Danny Ray Johnson (October 18, 1960December 13, 2017) was an American religious leader and politician whose many extravagant biographical claims were refuted in an

exposé Expose, exposé, or exposed may refer to: News sources * Exposé (journalism), a form of investigative journalism * '' The Exposé'', a British conspiracist website Film and TV Film * ''Exposé'' (film), a 1976 thriller film * ''Exposed'' (1932 ...

released two days before his suicide. Married twice with five children, Johnson was originally from

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...

, but had settled in Kentucky's Louisville metropolitan area by the 1980s. Throughout his life, Johnson claimed to have been involved with many prominent Americans and in many important US events; however, evidence would later come to light disputing most of these claims. After becoming involved with

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

in his youth, Johnson traveled with missionaries in

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

and

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the sout ...

before founding a controversial Louisville-area

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * C ...

in the late 1970s—Heart of Fire Church. With Johnson as its

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is c ...

, Heart of Fire eschewed the trappings of traditional Christian churches, and instead at times featured

toplessness Toplessness refers to the state in which a woman's breasts, including her areolas and nipples, are exposed, especially in a public place or in a visual medium. The male equivalent is barechestedness, also commonly called shirtlessness. Expose ...

, cigarette smoking,

underage drinking The legal drinking age is the minimum age at which a person can legally consume alcoholic beverages. The minimum age alcohol can be legally consumed can be different from the age when it can be purchased in some countries. These laws vary between ...

, anti-Islamism, and a

tattoo parlor A tattoo artist (also tattooer or tattooist) is an individual who applies permanent decorative tattoos, often in an established business called a "tattoo shop", "tattoo studio" or "tattoo parlour". Tattoo artists usually learn their craft via a ...

. Following arson in 2000, the church was rebuilt after Johnson was sued by his insurance provider. In the 2010s, Johnson became politically active, and despite a controversial campaign that included his own party leadership requesting his withdrawal, he was elected as a

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

to the Kentucky House of Representatives from the 49th District. After eleven months and nine days in office, an exposé by the Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting was publicly released; it included many refutations of Johnson's self-described biography, as well as details of a 2013

child sexual abuse Child sexual abuse (CSA), also called child molestation, is a form of child abuse in which an adult or older adolescent uses a child for sexual stimulation. Forms of child sexual abuse include engaging in sexual activities with a child (whet ...

allegation. After denying the accusations of his alleged victim, Johnson fatally shot himself on December 13, 2017.

Personal life

On October 18, 1960, Danny Ray Johnson was born to Jerry J. and Charlene Blocker Johnson in Bastrop, Louisiana; he was the

middle child "Middle Child" (stylized in all caps) is a song by American rapper J. Cole. The song was released on January 23, 2019, through Dreamville Records, Roc Nation and Interscope Records, as the first single from Dreamville's 2019 compilation album, ...

between sisters Teresa (older) and Rita (younger). Johnson graduated from Bastrop High School in 1979, and left home when 17 years old. By his early 20s, Johnson had fathered a child,

divorce Divorce (also known as dissolution of marriage) is the process of terminating a marriage or marital union. Divorce usually entails the canceling or reorganizing of the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage, thus dissolving the ...

d his first wife—Tylia Harris, and filed for bankruptcy in

. Per his 1985 Jefferson County Police Department arrest record, Johnson was tall and weighed . Johnson married his second wife, Rebecca Wilson (born ), in Jefferson County, Kentucky on February 14, 1987. By 2017, Johnson resided in

Mount Washington, Kentucky Mount Washington is a home rule-class city in northeast Bullitt County, Kentucky, in the United States. The population was 18,090 at the 2020 census. The city is one of several surrounding Louisville that have experienced a sharp rise in populat ...

, and had five children. Johnson was known for his hate speech,

Facebook Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin Mosk ...

posts, "and general derision for

African-Americans African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of enslav ...

and

Muslims Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

Refuted claims

On October 18, 1985, police in

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...

found two people about to set fire to Johnson's 1982 Cadillac Coupe de Ville. The suspects told police that Johnson had paid them over to burn the car. Johnson initially signed a

police report In legal terminology, a complaint is any formal legal document that sets out the facts and legal reasons (see: cause of action) that the filing party or parties (the plaintiff(s)) believes are sufficient to support a claim against the party ...

saying the vehicle was stolen, but later admitted to the insurance fraud scheme—he owed over on the vehicle, which also needed thousands in repairs.

Felony A felony is traditionally considered a crime of high seriousness, whereas a misdemeanor is regarded as less serious. The term "felony" originated from English common law (from the French medieval word "félonie") to describe an offense that resu ...

and misdemeanor charges were dismissed in February 1987 after Johnson completed a six-month

diversion program A diversion program, also known as a pretrial diversion program or pretrial intervention program, in the criminal justice system is a form of pretrial sentencing that helps remedy behavior leading to the arrest. Administered by the judicial or ...

. In later years, Johnson said: "When the car came up missing, I didn't know what happened to the car. It was vandalized." To Johnson's claim of having been the "White House Chaplain" to Presidents George H. W. Bush,

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...

, and

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...

, an expert in the field confirmed that no such position exists; all three

presidential libraries A presidential library, presidential center, or presidential museum is a facility either created in honor of a former president and containing their papers, or affiliated with a country's presidency. In the United States * The presidential libr ...

also confirmed "find ngno connection between Johnson and the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in ...

". The Rev. Dr.

Cecil Murray Cecil L. Murray is an American theologian. Formerly the pastor of the First African Methodist Episcopal Church of Los Angeles, he is currently the John R. Tansey Chair of Christian Ethics at University of Southern California , mottoeng = "Let ...

of the

First African Methodist Episcopal Church of Los Angeles The First African Methodist Episcopal Church of Los Angeles (First A.M.E. or FAME) is a megachurch in Los Angeles, California, United States, part of the African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church. It is the oldest church founded by African American ...

refuted Johnson's claim of setting up safe zones in that city during the

1992 Los Angeles riots The 1992 Los Angeles riots, sometimes called the 1992 Los Angeles uprising and the Los Angeles Race Riots, were a series of riots and civil disturbances that occurred in Los Angeles County, California, in April and May 1992. Unrest began in So ...

, not only by virtue of not having seen the "golden-haired preacher from Kentucky" among the rioting

people of color The term "person of color" ( : people of color or persons of color; abbreviated POC) is primarily used to describe any person who is not considered "white". In its current meaning, the term originated in, and is primarily associated with, the U ...

, but also because there were no "safe zones" during the six-day incident. Johnson regularly told of how he rushed to

Ground Zero In relation to nuclear explosions and other large bombs, ground zero (also called surface zero) is the point on the Earth's surface closest to a detonation. In the case of an explosion above the ground, ''ground zero'' is the point on the groun ...

after the

September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commer ...

, created an impromptu

morgue A morgue or mortuary (in a hospital or elsewhere) is a place used for the storage of human corpses awaiting identification (ID), removal for autopsy, respectful burial, cremation or other methods of disposal. In modern times, corpses have cu ...

, and administered

last rites The last rites, also known as the Commendation of the Dying, are the last prayers and ministrations given to an individual of Christian faith, when possible, shortly before death. They may be administered to those awaiting execution, mortall ...

to victims for two weeks. Storm Swain, a professor of

theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia The Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia (LTSP), also known as the ''Philadelphia Seminary,'' was one of eight theological seminaries associated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, the largest Lutheran denomination in North ...

who authored a book on chaplains at Ground Zero, invalidated every aspect of Johnson's September 11 claims. In 2017, the

Office of Chief Medical Examiner of the City of New York The Office of Chief Medical Examiner of the City of New York (OCME) is a department within the city government that investigates cases of persons who die within New York City from criminal violence; by casualty or by suicide; suddenly, when in appa ...

knew nobody who remembered Johnson. Johnson's 2016 and 2017 financial disclosures listed New York state

workers' compensation Workers' compensation or workers' comp is a form of insurance providing wage replacement and medical benefits to employees injured in the course of employment in exchange for mandatory relinquishment of the employee's right to sue his or her emp ...

as his only source of income. Johnson had claimed, at times under oath, to hold a Doctor of Theology, a

Doctor of Philosophy A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...

, and a Doctor of Divinity, the last of these from Kingsway University and Theological Seminary in

Des Moines, Iowa Des Moines () is the capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is also the county seat of Polk County. A small part of the city extends into Warren County. It was incorporated on September 22, 1851, as Fort Des Moines, ...

; Kingsway confirmed that Johnson studied there, but said he did not graduate. In his 2016 election campaign, Johnson claimed that

Ted Nugent Theodore Anthony Nugent (; born December 13, 1948) is an American rock musician and activist. He initially gained fame as the lead guitarist and occasional lead vocalist of The Amboy Dukes, a band formed in 1963 that played psychedelic rock ...

had endorsed his election during a rally at Bowman Field; spokeswomen for the musician and airport both said they had no record of this.

Religion

Johnson pointed to a childhood miracle as the incident that spurred his religiosity: he said a childhood

BB gun A BB gun is a type of air gun designed to shoot metallic spherical projectiles called BBs (not to be confused with similar-looking bearing balls), which are approximately the same size as BB-size lead birdshot used on shotguns ( in diamete ...

accident left him blinded in one or both of his eyes, his parents took him to a physician, and that he was seven years old when his blindness was miraculously cured. During his adolescence, Johnson attended the Swartz First Assembly of God Church in Monroe, Louisiana; Pastor Gerald Lewis recalls that Johnson, to whom he was a

father figure A father figure is usually an older man, normally one with power, authority, or strength, with whom one can identify on a deeply psychology, psychological level and who generates emotions generally felt towards one's father. Despite the literal te ...

and

mentor Mentorship is the influence, guidance, or direction given by a mentor. A mentor is someone who teaches or gives help and advice to a less experienced and often younger person. In an organizational setting, a mentor influences the personal and p ...

, stopped attending church without warning or explanation. After graduating high school at age 17, Johnson left Bastrop to work with the McKeithens—a

Christian mission A Christian mission is an organized effort for the propagation of the Christian faith. Missions involve sending individuals and groups across boundaries, most commonly geographical boundaries, to carry on evangelism or other activities, such as ...

s group based out of

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and ...

—for two years. When Dr. David Fischer was

pastor A pastor (abbreviated as "Pr" or "Ptr" , or "Ps" ) is the leader of a Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutheranism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and ...

of the Living Waters Church in Pasadena, California, he wrote a letter supporting alleged miracles performed by Johnson while Johnson was on a

short-term mission A short-term mission (STM) is the mobilization of a Christian missionary for a short period of time ranging from days to a year; many short-term missions are called mission trips. The short-term missionary is a fairly recent innovation in the glob ...

to South America. Fischer said in his June 1991 correspondence that Johnson had cured a Venezuelan man of deafness and resurrected a Colombian man: "He spoke to death and commanded it to leave."

Heart of Fire Church

According to the church's website, Johnson founded Heart of Fire Church in 1977, at 5101

Bardstown Road Bardstown Road is a major road in Louisville, Kentucky. It is known as "Restaurant Row". It carries U.S. Route 31E and U.S. Route 150, from the intersection of Baxter Avenue (US 31E) and Broadway (US 150), southeast through ...

, with himself as its

. Over its lifetime, Heart of Fire has drawn criticism from members of the local community and law-enforcement figures. Johnson frequently proselytized for political candidates (e.g.

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of P ...

) from his pulpit, violating the conditions of Heart of Fire's

tax-exempt status Tax exemption is the reduction or removal of a liability to make a compulsory payment that would otherwise be imposed by a ruling power upon persons, property, income, or transactions. Tax-exempt status may provide complete relief from taxes, redu ...

. Racism, toplessness, cigarette smoking,

Islamophobia Islamophobia is the fear of, hatred of, or prejudice against the religion of Islam or Muslims in general, especially when seen as a geopolitical force or a source of terrorism. The scope and precise definition of the term ''Islamophobia'' ...

, and a

were all reported phenomena at Johnson's Heart of Fire Church throughout the years. Thrice in six years, the church was

cited A citation is a reference to a source. More precisely, a citation is an abbreviated alphanumeric expression embedded in the body of an intellectual work that denotes an entry in the bibliographic references section of the work for the purpose of ...

for selling alcoholic drinks without a

liquor license A liquor license (or liquor licence in most forms of Commonwealth English) is a governmentally issued permit to sell, manufacture, store, or otherwise use alcoholic beverages. Canada In Canada, liquor licences are issued by the legal authority ...

; after a 2009 raid by the

Kentucky Office of Alcoholic Beverage Control The Kentucky Office of Alcoholic Beverage Control is an agency of the government of the U.S. state of Kentucky, within the state's Department of Public Protection and Environmental and Public Protection Cabinet. The department was created by the ...

(ABC), Johnson was fined despite attempting to convince Judge Sheila Collins that the beer that had been hidden from ABC agents was for

communion rite Mass is the main Eucharistic liturgical service in many forms of Western Christianity. The term ''Mass'' is commonly used in the Catholic Church, in the Western Rite Orthodox, in Old Catholic, and in Independent Catholic churches. The term is ...

s. After Dan Johnson died in 2017, his wife Rebecca took over as pastor of the church. , she was still president of Danny Johnson Heart of Fire Ministries, Inc.—

doing business as A trade name, trading name, or business name, is a pseudonym used by companies that do not operate under their registered company name. The term for this type of alternative name is a "fictitious" business name. Registering the fictitious name w ...

Heart of Fire Church. The non-profit was still active and registered with the

Secretary of State of Kentucky The secretary of state of Kentucky is one of the constitutional officers of the U.S. state of Kentucky. It is now an elected office, but was an appointed office prior to 1891. The current secretary of state is Republican Michael Adams, who was ...

(ID number 0219846) at 657 Bogard Lane in

Arson

In mid-2000, Brotherhood Mutual Insurance Company showed the non-denominational Heart of Fire Church was bankrupt: loans far exceeded the property's value, any potential sale, and the church's potential to ever settle. The church and Johnsons were also in financial straits with "dozens of bounced checks and

credit card debt Credit card debt results when a client of a credit card company purchases an item or service through the card system. Debt grows through the accrual of interest and penalties when the consumer fails to repay the company for the money they have ...

s". Heart of Fire secretary and parishioner Michelle Cook explained how Johnson committed insurance fraud against Brotherhood Mutual to make money for himself. On June 12, 2000, the church was set afire. When a witness saw a "white, late-model Cadillac pulling out from behind the church with no lights on hosedriver was a white guy who might have had blond hair", the blond, 1995-white-Cadillac-owning Johnson instead blamed the Ku Klux Klan, saying the hate group had threatened the church. No charges were ever filed in the church arson. The losses were estimated at $1–1.75million (equivalent to about $–M in ). Brotherhood Mutual sued Heart of Fire, saying that the church had been negligent in light of the alleged threats; both parties

settled A settler is a person who has migrated to an area and established a permanent residence there, often to colonize the area. A settler who migrates to an area previously uninhabited or sparsely inhabited may be described as a pioneer. Settle ...

and the church was rebuilt.

Foreclosure

In the 1990s, the Clinton administration's Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) began offering loan guarantees to rebuild

black church The black church (sometimes termed Black Christianity or African American Christianity) is the faith and body of Christian congregations and denominations in the United States that minister predominantly to African Americans, as well as their ...

es that were victims of arson. In 2003, Heart of Fire received the third-largest of these federal loans for (equivalent to about $M in ); the church used the money to buy the

chancel In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may terminate in an apse. Ov ...

it was leasing, and build a new

fellowship hall A fellowship hall is a large room or suite in a church building where certain activities in the church building are done, such as certain dinners, breakfasts, meetings, workshops, etc. It gets its name from the fact that the people there at the ch ...

-cum-

bar Bar or BAR may refer to: Food and drink * Bar (establishment), selling alcoholic beverages * Candy bar * Chocolate bar Science and technology * Bar (river morphology), a deposit of sediment * Bar (tropical cyclone), a layer of cloud * Bar (u ...

. In 2019, Clinton-era HUD secretary Henry Cisneros described Heart of Fire's purchase and construction as not "meet ngthe criteria that we originally had set". Less than a month after securing the guaranteed loan, and for the next 14 years, Johnson failed to have the loan forgiven. In 2009, the

US federal government The federal government of the United States (U.S. federal government or U.S. government) is the national government of the United States, a federal republic located primarily in North America, composed of 50 states, a city within a fed ...

obtained the mortgage for Heart of Fire. In February 2018, HUD secured a court order of sale for the church—valued at —as the non-profit was more than (equivalent to about $M in ) in debt to the federal government. Heart of Fire was scheduled to hold a May 20, 2018 auction ("antiques, appliances, furniture,

Harley Davidson Harley may refer to: People * Harley (given name) * Harley (surname) Places * Harley, Ontario, a township in Canada * Harley, Brant County, Ontario, Canada * Harley, Shropshire, England * Harley, South Yorkshire, England * Harley Street, in L ...

parts and commercial kitchen equipment"), the purpose of which was described to

WDRB WDRB (channel 41) is a television station in Louisville, Kentucky, United States, affiliated with the Fox network. It is owned by Block Communications alongside Salem, Indiana–licensed dual CW/ MyNetworkTV affiliate WBKI (channel 58). Both ...

by Pastor Rebecca Johnson as:

Rape allegation

At age eight, Maranda Richmond first attended Heart of Fire Church in 2004 with her father. She became friends with the Johnson children and considered Dan Johnson "a second dad". Richmond attended parties and

sleepover A sleepover is a social occasion where a young person stays at the home of a friend. Multiple people and/or friends may sleepover at the friend's home, typically a younger person will partake in a sleepover, however an adult or older person may s ...

s that were held at the church building as well as the Johnsons' house; occasionally alcoholic beverages were provided to the children by Johnson and other adults. Richmond told the Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting (KyCIR) that she was

raped Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse or other forms of sexual penetration carried out against a person without their consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority, or agai ...

by Johnson 15 days after her 17th birthday (the night of

December 31 It is known by a collection of names including: Saint Sylvester's Day, New Year's Eve or Old Years Day/Night, as the following day is New Year's Day. It is the last day of the year; the following day is January 1, the first day of the following ...

, 2012); she had been staying with his daughter in the apartment under the

. The following day, the two exchanged messages over

: Richmond and her parents went to the police in April 2013, but after failing to secretly record a confession from Johnson, the case was closed with no charges filed. Richmond saw a

mental health professional A mental health professional is a health care practitioner or social and human services provider who offers services for the purpose of improving an individual's mental health or to treat mental disorders. This broad category was developed as a ...

the summer of 2013, and presented her "

psychosocial The psychosocial approach looks at individuals in the context of the combined influence that psychological factors and the surrounding social environment have on their physical and mental wellness and their ability to function. This approach is ...

assessment, notes and progress reports" to the KyCIR in 2017; the onetime

honors student An honors student or honor student is a student recognized for achieving high grades or high marks in their coursework at school. United States In the US, honors students may refer to: # Students recognized for their academic achievement on lis ...

and drum major at

Louisville Male High School Louisville Male Traditional High School is a public co-ed secondary school serving students in grades 9 through 12 in the southside of Louisville, Kentucky, USA. It is part of the Jefferson County Public School District. History Ninth and Ches ...

had exhibited symptoms of

post-traumatic stress disorder Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental and behavioral disorder that can develop because of exposure to a traumatic event, such as sexual assault, warfare, traffic collisions, child abuse, domestic violence, or other threats o ...

. After the KyCIR began investigating Johnson, the

Louisville Metro Police Department The Louisville Metro Police Department (LMPD) began operations on January 6, 2003, as part of the creation of the consolidated city-county government in Louisville, Kentucky, United States. It was formed by the merger of the Jefferson County Pol ...

reached out to Richmond and reopened the case at her request, but had made no actions as of five months later.

Politics

In the 2010s, Johnson began to zealously express right-wing and libertarian political sentiments.

2016 elections

Johnson ran in the Republican Party's primary for the 49th District's seat (representing part of

Bullitt County, Kentucky Bullitt County is a county located in the north central portion of the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of the 2020 census, the population was 82,217. Its county seat is Shepherdsville. The county was founded in 1796. Located just south of the city ...

) in the Kentucky House of Representatives; his

political campaign A political campaign is an organized effort which seeks to influence the decision making progress within a specific group. In democracies, political campaigns often refer to electoral campaigns, by which representatives are chosen or referend ...

mirrored his personal ideals of "supporting guns,

liberty Liberty is the ability to do as one pleases, or a right or immunity enjoyed by prescription or by grant (i.e. privilege). It is a synonym for the word freedom. In modern politics, liberty is understood as the state of being free within society fr ...

and

pro-life Anti-abortion movements, also self-styled as pro-life or abolitionist movements, are involved in the abortion debate advocating against the practice of abortion and its legality. Many anti-abortion movements began as countermovements in respon ...

causes". During a

political rally A political demonstration is an action by a mass group or collection of groups of people in favor of a political or other cause or people partaking in a protest against a cause of concern; it often consists of walking in a mass march formati ...

at Heart of Fire, the church's billboard read, "Pray To

Make America Great Again "Make America Great Again" or MAGA is an American political slogan popularized by Donald Trump in his successful 2016 presidential campaign. The slogan became a pop culture phenomenon, seeing widespread use and spawning numerous variants i ...

". Jennifer Stepp (a former Heart of Fire congregant) originally won the Republican primary, but was found by a judge to have been ineligible to run. The Bullitt County Republican Party executive committee held a secret ballot and selected Johnson as their replacement candidate. In the general election for the 49th District's seat, Johnson faced the incumbent

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

, Linda H. Belcher (born ). Belcher had held the 49th seat for three terms after replacing her husband in 2008. Johnson eschewed their

public debate :''for debate among the public, see Public sphere'' Public debate may mean simply debating by the public, or in public. The term is also used for a particular formal style of debate in a competitive or educational context. Two teams of two compe ...

in favor of making online accusations against Belcher, alleging that she ("lyin' Linda") had—among other accusations—instigated

death threat A death threat is a threat, often made anonymously, by one person or a group of people to kill another person or group of people. These threats are often designed to intimidate victims in order to manipulate their behaviour, in which case a de ...

s and

bomb threat A bomb threat or bomb scare is a threat, usually verbal or written, to detonate an explosive or incendiary device to cause property damage, death, injuries, and/or incite fear, whether or not such a device actually exists. History Bomb threat ...

doxxed Doxing or doxxing is the act of publicly providing personally identifiable information about an individual or organization, usually via the internet. Historically, the term has been used interchangeably to refer to both the aggregation of this in ...

the Johnsons, and colluded with

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the ...

("the Islam’crat") and

Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States sen ...

to send "Chicago thugs" after Johnson's family. Belcher refuted Johnson's claims, but otherwise ran a subdued campaign, focusing instead on her record as representative. Also during his campaign, Johnson made several

posts that racially-targeted the

family of Barack Obama The family of Barack Obama, the 44th president of the United States, is a prominent American family active in law, education, activism and politics. Obama's immediate family circle was the First Family of the United States, first family of the ...

, and then refused to withdraw from the race even at the request of the

Republican Party of Kentucky The Republican Party of Kentucky is the affiliate of the Republican Party in Kentucky and follows its nationally established platform. The party's headquarters is in Frankfort, Kentucky. The party gained relevance around the 1940s. Since this ...

. On

Election Day Election day or polling day is the day on which general elections are held. In many countries, general elections are always held on a Saturday or Sunday, to enable as many voters as possible to participate; while in other countries elections a ...

2016, Republican

received almost 75% of Bullitt County's votes for

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

, while Johnson defeated Belcher by 156 votes.

Representative

While Johnson's constitutional tenure in the Kentucky House began on January 1, 2017, legislators didn't begin work until January 3, 2017. According to his House of Representatives profile, he was a

and a

Kentucky Colonel Kentucky Colonel is the highest title of honor bestowed by the Commonwealth of Kentucky, and is the most well-known of a number of honorary colonelcies conferred by United States governors. A Kentucky Colonel Commission (the certificate) i ...

. Despite its

unconstitutionality Constitutionality is said to be the condition of acting in accordance with an applicable constitution; "Webster On Line" the status of a law, a procedure, or an act's accordance with the laws or set forth in the applicable constitution. When l ...

, Johnson filed a

bill Bill(s) may refer to: Common meanings * Banknote, paper cash (especially in the United States) * Bill (law), a proposed law put before a legislature * Invoice, commercial document issued by a seller to a buyer * Bill, a bird or animal's beak Plac ...

(Abolition of Abortion in Kentucky Act) to make

abortion Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. An abortion that occurs without intervention is known as a miscarriage or "spontaneous abortion"; these occur in approximately 30% to 40% of pre ...

s performed in Kentucky illegal. Physicians who performed abortions under the proposed law could be charged with "fetal homicide—a

felony A felony is traditionally considered a crime of high seriousness, whereas a misdemeanor is regarded as less serious. The term "felony" originated from English common law (from the French medieval word "félonie") to describe an offense that resu ...

that can be charged as a capital offense but isn't eligible for the death penalty". Johnson also filed bills concerning freedom of speech. One such proposal would have forced

public universities A public university or public college is a university or college that is in owned by the state or receives significant public funds through a national or subnational government, as opposed to a private university. Whether a national university ...

to allow the promulgation of speech that is "offensive, unwise, immoral, indecent, disagreeable, conservative, liberal, traditional, radical, or wrongheaded". The other would require all internet-accessible computers sold in Kentucky to come pre-installed with software to block " obscenity,

child pornography Child pornography (also called CP, child sexual abuse material, CSAM, child porn, or kiddie porn) is pornography that unlawfully exploits children for sexual stimulation. It may be produced with the direct involvement or sexual assault of a ...

, revenge pornography, and prostitution". He successfully co-sponsored a bill allowing Kentucky schools to offer bible-literacy classes. As of November 14, 2017, he was a member of the House's committees on: State Government; Tourism, Small Business, and Information Technology; Transportation; Veterans, Military Affairs, and Public Protection; Elections, Constitutional Amendments, and Intergovernmental Affairs; and Tourism and Outdoor Recreation.

Exposé and suicide

On December 11, 2017, the Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting (KyCIR) released an

on Johnson ("The Pope's Long Con"), the culmination of over seven months of investigations and more than 100 interviews. Both Democrats and Republicans called for his resignation from the

Kentucky General Assembly The Kentucky General Assembly, also called the Kentucky Legislature, is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Kentucky. It comprises the Kentucky Senate and the Kentucky House of Representatives. The General Assembly meets annually in ...

. The Republican

governor of Kentucky The governor of the Commonwealth of Kentucky is the head of government of Kentucky. Sixty-two men and one woman have served as governor of Kentucky. The governor's term is four years in length; since 1992, incumbents have been able to seek re-e ...

Matt Bevin Matthew Griswold Bevin (; born January 9, 1967) is an American businessman and politician who served as the 62nd governor of Kentucky, from 2015 to 2019. He was the third Republican Party (United States), Republican elected Kentucky governor sin ...

, called Johnson "an embarrassment", while the Democratic

mayor of Louisville Metro The history of Louisville, Kentucky, United States, as a city is considered to have started on February 13, 1828, the date of the first city charter. From the time of its first organization as a village, on February 7, 1781, until its incorporati ...

initiated a review of Richmond's 2013 allegations. Johnson held a

press conference A press conference or news conference is a media event in which notable individuals or organizations invite journalists to hear them speak and ask questions. Press conferences are often held by politicians, corporations, non-governmental organ ...

two days later at Heart of Fire Church where he denied the accusations of sexual assault, instead saying that Richmond's claims stemmed from their political differences. That afternoon at , Johnson posted a rambling missive to

. After

pinging In spark ignition internal combustion engines, knocking (also knock, detonation, spark knock, pinging or pinking) occurs when combustion of some of the air/fuel mixture in the cylinder does not result from propagation of the flame front ignite ...

the assemblyman's phone, police found his body on the north

bank A bank is a financial institution that accepts deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital markets. Because ...

of the Salt River in

; standing by his car at the nearby bridge, he had shot himself in the head with a .40-caliber pistol. The time of death was recorded as 8:20p.m. The next day, Rebecca Johnson told reporters, "These high-tech lynchings based on lies and half-truths can’t be allowed to win the day"; on ''Today'', she blamed the KyCIR ("that little greasy reporter") for her husband's death. Dan Johnson was interred in a Mount Washington cemetery on December 18, 2017. Nominated by the Bullitt County Republican Party, Rebecca Johnson sought election to her husband's position as state representative from the 49th District. Of the 4947 votes cast in the February 20, 2018

special election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election (Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to f ...

, Democrat Linda H. Belcher received 68.45 percent; Johnson blamed electoral fraud for her loss. By February 2018, both women were registered for the 2018 general election, though Johnson withdrew the following month, saying, "I feel my time can be best served with my family and my ministry".

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Dan 1960 births 2017 suicides 2017 deaths 21st-century American bishops 21st-century American legislators American people who fabricated academic degrees American politicians who died by suicide bishops in Kentucky burials in Kentucky Kentucky Republicans members of the Kentucky House of Representatives people from Bastrop, Louisiana people from Bullitt County, Kentucky suicides by firearm in Kentucky