"},"parts":[{"template":{"target":{"wt":"efn","href":"./Template:Efn"},"params":{"1":{"wt":" He moved to Talequah, where he lived from 1893 to 1896, before moving to Anadarko in 1896."}},"i":0}}]}"> [lower-alpha 1] He moved to Claremore in 1905, which he called his home most of his life. [2] His formal education ended with a Bachelor of Laws (LL.B.) degree at Cumberland University.
In 1908, Napoleon apparently felt the urge to venture more widely. After visiting a naval recruiting station in Oklahoma City, he won parental approval to enlist. According to Herley, he became quite homesick while even before he arrived at a naval base in California. Still, he persisted, and spent a month training aboard the U.S.S. Pensacola, before returning home. It was the end of his naval career. Johnson graduated from Mary Gregory Memorial School, a Presbyterian mission school, at Anadarko in western Oklahoma in 1909. [1]
After graduation from high school, Johnson joined the federal Indian Service, working first at a variety jobs in Tower, Minnesota, the Otoe-Missouria agency at Red Rock, Oklahoma (1913–14), and the Chilocco Indian Agricultural School at Chilocco, Oklahoma (1914–17). He later graduated from the state University Preparatory School (later renamed Oklahoma Military Academy), and attended Henry Kendall College (now Tulsa University). [1]
Johnson re-entered the military during 1918, this time enlisting in the U.S. Army. After his discharge, he worked briefly for the Osage Indian Agency legal department, then returned to Claremore where he was appointed Assistant District Attorney for Rogers County, Oklahoma. [1]
The biographical sketch written by Harlow in 1930 noted Johnson's interest in tribal and educational affairs.
Johnson was educated in the Anadarko schools, Mary Gregory Presbyterian Mission, Eastern University Prep School, Henry Kendall College (later renamed as the University of Tulsa), where he spent two years. Then he went to Cumberland University, where he earned the LL.B. degree in June, 1921. He returned to Oklahoma, where he passed the bar exam and became a licensed attorney, then went to work in the legal department of the Osage Agency, before moving back to Claremore. [1] Johnson worked for the U.S. Indian Service in 1913–17, then became assistant county attorney for Rogers County, Oklahoma in 1923–25, then county attorney 1925–28. [2] Herley wrote that Johnson was elected to another term as county attorney in 1930, which he resigned in 1931 to open his own law practice; he continued for three years, when he was appointed as district judge for the Oklahoma Twelfth District. [1]
Harlow's biographical sketch noted that Johnson attended tribal meetings at Talequah and "...takes unusual interest in tribal affairs and educational work for Indians." Harlow also wrote that in 1920, Johnson was listed as a registered Democrat and County Attorney for Rogers County, Oklahoma. [2] p. 717. Herley noted that about 1925, Johnson began participating in Democratic conventions in Oklahoma City. [1]
Consistent with his political party affiliation, Johnson actively supported Franklin D. Roosevelt and his New Deal Program in the early 1930s. He was soon disappointed, and particularly disagreed with the new Democratic Commissioner of the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), John Collier. [1] [lower-alpha 2] Although Johnson was a member of the Cherokee tribe, his views about the organization needed to cope with the massive Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) extended much farther than a single tribe.
The National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) held its first convention in Denver, Colorado, in 1944. Initially, Johnson was reluctant to attend, but was talked into going by some of his many friends in Oklahoma. His level of education, knowledge of the American legal system and how to work within it, status as a judge and his natural skills as a leader impressed attendees who had not previously known him. He was unanimously elected president of the NCAI. [1] About 80 delegates from 50 tribes and associations in 27 states came together at the Cosmopolitan Hotel in Denver, Colorado, on November 15, 1944. The delegates then created ten permanent committees and elected an executive council, consisting of four officers and eight councilmen. By November 18, the council had passed 18 resolutions that concerned three main topics: (1) sovereignty, (2) civil rights and (3) political recognition for all Indians. These became the platform NCAI would address during the coming year. Within a year, NCAI claimed to have over 300 members, from nearly every tribe in the U.S. [3] Johnson served as president until 1952. [3]
By 1952, Johnson was hearing warnings that many members felt that his approach was ineffective in combating the political leaders who continued to press for termination of Federal benefits to Indians. Some members even claimed that NCAI was controlled by "...a small clique of its present officers," and "stooges of the Indian Bureau." An astute politician, Johnson announced that he was resigning as President of NCAI, and would be replaced by W. W. Short. [1]
On December 9, 1964, former Oklahoma Supreme Court Justice, N. S. Corn, then 80 years old and serving an 18-month sentence in a federal prison for income tax evasion, gave a sworn statement to the government detailing his involvement in the crime of bribery. The document named two other Supreme Court justices, Napoleon B. Johnson and Earl Welch, plus several other people as also participating in the scheme. [lower-alpha 3] Corn also admitted that he could not recall failing to receive a bribe in any of the 24 years he had served on the court. [5] Ten days later, Corn was freed early. [4] [5]
One copy of Corn's affidavit was sent to Federal Judge Stephen Chandler. Simply having Corn's affidavit in hand was not enough to start a battle for reform. Chandler then called one of the most recently elected Supreme Court judges, William H. Berry, for a private meeting at Chandler's home, where Berry read the document and agreed that somehow the document must be made public. With Chandler's agreement, Berry contacted Oklahoma County Representative, G. T. Blankenship, who was appalled by what the document revealed. [lower-alpha 4] Berry assured Blankenship that if he would read Corn's affidavit aloud from the House floor, he (Blankenship) would be protected by legislative immunity and could not be sued. The representative agreed to do this. [5]
After the legislature reconvened in January, 1965, Blankenship asked for the floor and began to speak. Apparently, the subject was still a well kept secret. The House remained in absolute silence throughout the speech. The stunned Democratic members began to shout cries of "Politics!" But the press reported the entire story to the public and would not let go. The Oklahoman printed a stirring editorial about how the state needed to reform the way judges were elected. [lower-alpha 5] So many powerful politicians believed that they had greatly benefitted from the status quo, that many people expected serious retribution against Blankenship. Governor Henry Bellmon ordered the State Board of Investigation to sweep the legislator's house for electronic eavesdropping devices, thinking that the opposition would likely try to destroy his credibility. He was also warned to go straight home every night after work - no stops for drinks or dinner at bars and restaurants for the same reason. [5]
On March 9, 1965, Supreme Court Justice Johnson took a lie detector examination concerning the allegation that he received $7,500 in return for a favorable ruling. He failed. Following that, the Oklahoma State House of Representatives passed bills of impeachment against him. The Oklahoma State Senate convicted him in an impeachment trial, automatically removing him from office and ending his judicial career. [6]
After Johnson's conviction, Justice Berry wrote a book, Justice for Sale: The Shocking Scandal of the Oklahoma Supreme Court, detailing his views of the scandal. In it, he placed much of the blame on the system Oklahoma used for selecting judges, especially those trying to become appellate judges. Berry called the old system, in which bribes were simply passed off as "campaign contributions," "...a scandal waiting to happen." Burck Bailey, president of the Oklahoma Bar Association, said in a 1988 address to the OBA:"The villain in this sordid affair may be the method used in Oklahoma to fill judicial office.... The potential for corruption is inherent in the system. These payoffs, (as claimed by Cargill and Corn) were simply ‘campaign contributions’." [7]
Napoleon B. Johnson married Martha Lee Webber. The couple had one child, a daughter. He adhered to the Presbyterian faith, and belonged to the Masons, the American Legion, and the Chamber of Commerce. [2]
Johnson reportedly died in 1974. [8]
Chandler is a city in, and the county seat of, Lincoln County, Oklahoma, United States. and is part of the Oklahoma City Metropolitan Area. The population was 2,858 at the time of the 2020 census. Chandler is located northeast of Oklahoma City on SH-66 and I-44, and north of Shawnee on SH-18.
Claremore is a city and the county seat of Rogers County in Green Country, northeastern Oklahoma, United States. The population was 19,580 at the 2020 census, a 5.4 percent increase over the figure of 18,581 recorded in 2010. Located in the foothills of the Ozark Mountains. It is home of Rogers State University and is part of the Tulsa Metropolitan Area.
Robert Eugene Lavender was an American judge who served as Justice of the Oklahoma Supreme Court, serving from 1965 until 2007. He served as the Court's Chief Justice from 1979 to 1981. Lavender died on March 23, 2020, at the age of 93.
The Cherokee Nation, formerly known as the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma, is the largest of three federally recognized tribes of Cherokees in the United States. It includes people descended from members of the Old Cherokee Nation who relocated, due to increasing pressure, from the Southeast to Indian Territory and Cherokees who were forced to relocate on the Trail of Tears. The tribe also includes descendants of Cherokee Freedmen, Absentee Shawnee, and Natchez Nation. As of 2023, over 450,000 people were enrolled in the Cherokee Nation.
Joe Byrd was the Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation from 1995 to 1999. Byrd is bilingual, with an ability to communicate in both Cherokee and English. He ran for re-election in 1999, but lost to Chad "Corntassel" Smith. He ran again in 2003, but again lost to the incumbent Smith.
Otto Arthur Cargill was a prominent lawyer, author, politician and buffalo rancher during Oklahoma's early days. He was mayor of Oklahoma City April 4, 1923 - April 12, 1927.
The Cherokee Freedmen controversy was a political and tribal dispute between the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma and descendants of the Cherokee Freedmen regarding the issue of tribal membership. The controversy had resulted in several legal proceedings between the two parties from the late 20th century to August 2017.
Ralph B. Hodges was born and raised in Anadarko, Oklahoma. He earned his J. D. degree from the University of Oklahoma. After serving as Bryan County Attorney and as District Judge, Hodges was appointed to the Oklahoma Supreme Court by Governor Henry Bellmon on April 19, 1965, as Associate Justice, where he would serve until his retirement from the Court in 2004. During that time he also served as Chief Justice of the Oklahoma Supreme Court from 1977 to 1978 and 1993–1994.
The National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) is an American Indian and Alaska Native rights organization. It was founded in 1944 to represent the tribes and resist U.S. federal government pressure for termination of tribal rights and assimilation of their people. These were in contradiction of their treaty rights and status as sovereign entities. The organization continues to be an association of federally recognized and state-recognized Indian tribes.
Clement Vann Rogers was an American politician and judge in Indian Territory. Clem Rogers' parents were both mixed-blood Cherokees who moved to Indian Territory in 1832, several years before the Trail of Tears. Before the American Civil War, Clem allied with the "Treaty Party", a Cherokee faction that supported signing the Treaty of New Echota. When the Civil War broke out, Clem enlisted in the Confederate Army, and served under General Stand Watie. After the war, he became active in Cherokee politics, first elected as a judge in the Cooweescoowee District, then served five terms in the Cherokee Senate. He later served as a delegate to the Oklahoma Constitutional Convention. Rogers was the father of entertainer Will Rogers.
Stephen Sanders Chandler Jr. was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma.
The Delaware Tribe of Indians, formerly known as the Cherokee Delaware or the Eastern Delaware, based in Bartlesville, Oklahoma, is one of three federally recognized tribes of the Lenape people in the United States. The others are the Delaware Nation based in Anadarko, Oklahoma, and the Stockbridge-Munsee Community of Wisconsin. More Lenape or Delaware people live in Canada.
Walter White Shaw was an American football player and coach, attorney and businessman. He played at the halfback position for Fielding H. Yost's renowned 1901 "Point-a-Minute" football team. He later worked as an attorney, judge and businessman in Oklahoma and Louisiana.
James Waddey "J.W." Clark was a justice of the Oklahoma Supreme Court from 1925 to 1933. He was born in Allisona, Williamson County, Tennessee to Joseph Poindexter and Cora Belle Waddey. After finishing public school, James became a traveling salesman, then went into the mercantile business, and finally went into business for himself. He took a course in law in 1907 and 1908, then enrolled in Cumberland University in 1909. By 1910, he had opened a law practice and won election to the Oklahoma legislature. In 1912, he was elected County Attorney for Atoka County, Oklahoma and was reelected after his first two-year term expired. In 1917, he returned to private law practice in Atoka, where he remained until he won election to the Oklahoma Supreme Court in 1924, filling a vacancy and taking office in 1925. He was reelected for a full 6-year term in 1926.
William A. Berry was a Justice of the Oklahoma Supreme Court from 1958 to 1978. During World War II, Berry survived 33 months as a prisoner of war in Japan. While serving on the supreme court, he revealed corruption that became a major political scandal.
Thomas G. Andrews (1882–1942), a native of Orangeburg, South Carolina, also known as Thomas Galpin Andrews, was born to John D. Andrews and Belle Andrews on August 29, 1882. In 1904, he married Adelphia Wohlgematt, who died in 1928.
John H. Pitchford (1857-1923) was an American jurist from Walhalla, South Carolina, descended from Irish immigrant ancestors. Pitchdford was raised in Walhalla and completed his early education at Newberry College. He then studied law in a private law office, and was admitted to the bar on his 21st birthday. His first legal practice was in Clayton, Georgia, but he soon moved to the city of Gainesville, Georgia.
Wayne W. Bayless (1895-1975) was an attorney and politician from Claremore, Oklahoma, who served as a justice on the Oklahoma Supreme Court between 1932 and 1948. A member of the Democratic party, he had served previously in the Oklahoma House of Representatives, a candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives in 1924 and as a District Judge in 1926–1929.
N. S. Corn, also known as Nelson S. Corn or Nelson Smith Corn, (1884–1967) was a justice on the Oklahoma Supreme Court who was one of the central figures of the Oklahoma Supreme Court Scandal that occurred during the mid-1960s. He was accused of income tax evasion, impeached, tried, convicted, and sentenced to a prison term. During his imprisonment, he prepared a document confessing to his crimes and also provided evidence that led to the resignation or impeachment of additional justices for financial crimes while serving on the court, as well as causing the Oklahoma Legislature to reform the selection of Supreme Court justices.
The 1965 Oklahoma Supreme Court scandal was a political scandal in the U.S. state of Oklahoma involving judicial misconduct on the Oklahoma Supreme Court. Justice N. S. Corn was convicted in 1964 on federal tax evasion charges. After his conviction, he implicated himself, Samuel Earl Welch, and Napoleon Bonaparte Johnson in accepting bribes to decide cases.