District of Columbia City Council Chairman Kwame Brown issued this statement in honor of Johnson, 79, who died Sunday at her brother's home in Lake Charles, La.:
"We are greatly saddened by the loss of an illustrious and trailblazing member of the bar, the Honorable Norma Holloway Johnson," Brown said. "Transplanted from her native Louisiana to the District of Columbia as a youth, Ms. Johnson attended Shaw Junior High School, Dunbar Senior High School, Miner Teachers' College (now the University of the District of Columbia), and Georgetown Law School. She taught in DC Public Schools, served in the Office Corporation Counsel of the District of Columbia and as associate judge of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, until her appointment to the United States District Court in Washington, DC, in 1980."
Brown added that Johnson was appointed by President Jimmy Carter as a lifetime judge (she served from 1997to 2001), and that "served the legal profession and this country with distinction and we are extremely grateful for her dedication. Throughout her judicial career, she was a staunch advocate for the advancement for youths and minorities. We will not soon forget her contributions to this community."