Leon Johnson (born James Leon Johnson on August 22, 1961) is a Judge of the

Arkansas Circuit Courts The Arkansas Circuit Courts are the state trial courts of general jurisdiction of the state of Arkansas. Composition There are 23 numbered judicial circuits; however, five circuits are split, resulting in 28 judicial circuits. Each has five divisi ...

. He serves as the First Division Circuit Judge for the Sixth Judicial District, which is composed of Pulaski and

Perry Perry or pear cider is an alcoholic beverage made from fermented pears, traditionally in England (particularly Gloucestershire, Herefordshire, and Worcestershire), parts of South Wales, France (especially Normandy and Anjou), Canada, Austral ...

counties.

Education and career

Born in White County,

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the West South Central region of the Southern United States. It borders Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, and Oklahoma ...

, Wilson received a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

degree from

Harding University Harding University is a Private university, private Christian university with its main campus in Searcy, Arkansas, United States. Established in 1924, the institution offers Undergraduate education, undergraduate, Postgraduate education, gradu ...

in 1983 and a

Juris Doctor A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Doctor of Law (JD) is a graduate-entry professional degree that primarily prepares individuals to practice law. In the United States and the Philippines, it is the only qualifying law degree. Other j ...

from

University of Arkansas The University of Arkansas (U of A, UArk, or UA) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Fayetteville, Arkansas, United States. It is the Flagship campus, flagship campus of the University of Arkan ...

in 1988. He was in private practice in

Jacksonville Jacksonville ( ) is the most populous city proper in the U.S. state of Florida, located on the Atlantic coast of North Florida, northeastern Florida. It is the county seat of Duval County, Florida, Duval County, with which the City of Jacksonv ...

, Arkansas from 1994 to 2000. In 2000, he was appointed by

Mike Huckabee Michael Dale Huckabee (, born August 24, 1955) is an American diplomat, political commentator, Baptist minister, and politician serving as the 29th United States Ambassador to Israel, United States ambassador to Israel since 2025. A member of ...

to complete the term of

Mark Pryor Mark Lunsford Pryor (born January 10, 1963) is an American attorney, politician and lobbyist who served as a United States Senate, United States Senator from Arkansas from 2003 to 2015. He previously served as Arkansas Attorney General, Attorney ...

as acting

Arkansas Attorney General The attorney general of Arkansas, usually known simply as the attorney general (AG), is one of Arkansas's seven constitutional officers. The officeholder serves as the state's top law enforcement officer and consumer advocate. History The at ...

. He served for 11 days. He was the first Black person to serve as Arkansas Attorney General, and the second Black person to hold an executive branch constitutional office in Arkansas.

State Judicial Service

In 2010, Johnson was elected as the First Division Circuit Judge for the Sixth Judicial district. He was re-elected in 2016 and 2022.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Leon 1961 births Living people 21st-century American judges Harding University alumni People from White County, Arkansas University of Arkansas School of Law alumni Arkansas attorneys general