On September 17, the U.S. Senate confirmed the appointment of Iain David Johnston as a District Court Judge for the Northern District of Illinois. The news left me with a proud and glowing “and-we-knew-him-back-then” moment!
Yes, he was a Trump appointee, and one of those jammed through the Senate by Mitch McConnell in just a few days this month. But he’s also a fine man and is going to be a heck of a judge.
It’s a shame that the politics of this rush confirmation colored the process, leading both Hawaii senators, Mazie Hirono and Brian Schatz, to vote against Johnston. He was confirmed by a 77-14 margin, with both Hawaii senators voting no. I was glad to see that Illinois Senators Duckworth and Durbin both supported his confirmation.
Our Senators missed an excellent opportunity to highlight Judge Johnston’s strong Hawaii roots! Although Iain was born in Chicago and later went to college and law school in the Chicago area, he is the son of the late attorney Robert G. Johnston, “Gil” to his friends. Gil was born in Waipahu. His parents were both immigrants from Scotland. His dad served at different times as assistant manager of Aiea Plantation, and mill superintendent for Waipahu Plantation.
Gil went to law school in Chicago, and returned to Hawaii in the late 1960s to become head of Hawaii’s Legal Services Corporation, providing legal assistance to low income residents. Both with Legal Aid, and later in private practice, Gil was a fierce advocate for low income residents and Hawaiian activists of the period. He was willing to buck the establishment to serve his clients, which didn’t do his legal career in Hawaii any good.
We became good friends with Gil and his wife, Janice, also an attorney, during the years they were here in Hawaii, and considered them both friends and mentors. We were lucky to watch Iain and his older brother, Ben, growing up. Iain struggled with dyslexia, but obviously treated it as just another obstacle to overcome.
As I recall, Iain and Ben attended Iolani while the family lived in Honolulu. Iain was about 10 when they moved back to Chicago, where his father became professor, and later dean, at John Marshall Law School. Iain, Ben, and their families still return to Hawaii regularly.
One of his opinions as a magistrate judge made news for putting new limits on cell phone tracking by law enforcement agencies.
In any case, congratulations to U.S. District Court Judge Iain Johnston!
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Great read and always something I hadn’t heard about in the regular media.
I noticed that Ian David Johnston was a member of the Federalist Society, which is a right wing organization which for the past several decades has promoted conservative lawyers for appointments to the federal courts. Almost anyone appointed by Trump has memberhip or ties to the organization.
Ian’s grandfather managed the Aiea refinery that produced sugar products for the Hawaii market while the bulk of the industry’s output went to Crocket, California, for mainland distribution by C&H [California and Hawaii] “back in the day.” If Ian overcame dyslexia to become a federal judge he is an inspiration for others who struggle with the affliction. Am told that not every “Federalist” member ranks as an ideologue. Let’s hope.