Faith Johnson discusses lessons learned as Dallas County DA

Former Dallas County District Attorney Faith Johnson is on to the next episode in her career.

Johnson lost to Judge John Creuzot in the district attorney's race last November. She has since been named partner in a Dallas law firm.

In her first interview since accepting her new role, Faith Johnson says she has landed in her new job.

“And I’m telling you, I’m so elated to be here,” she said.

Johnson has been made a partner at the Stanton Law Firm. They specialize in civil litigation and business disputes. The former judge is still settling into her new position two months after her election opponent, John Cruezot, was sworn into the seat she once held.

Johnson’s time as district attorney was shaped by high profile emotionally charged cases like the Roy Oliver case, the Amber Guyger case and, most recently, the Sherin Matthews case.

Last week, Sini Matthews was released after 15 months in jail following the death of her adoptive daughter, Sherin. Sini’s husband, Wesley, is still jailed for capital murder. But the current DA dropped the charge of child abandonment against Sini.

“I’m on board with supporting whatever this DA and the office felt they needed to do based on what they had in front of them,” Johnson said. “Obviously, we had something in front of us when I was DA, and I made those calls based on what was in front of me. They’re making the call based on what they have at hand. So we got to trust that that decision was made based on legitimate concerns and the evidence before them.”

As district attorney, Johnson started the criminal case against former Dallas Police Officer Amber Guyger in the shooting death of Botham Jean. A grand jury returned a murder indictment against Guyger, though she was initially charged with manslaughter.

“Obviously, I felt very strongly about the case, and we were able to get an indictment,” Johnson said. “And now this administration has the responsibility to proceed on the case and prosecute it and hopefully get a good outcome. I believe this district attorney’s office will do their very, very best. I don’t think they're gonna let the citizens down. I really don’t believe that.”

Johnson says she’s learned that you can’t take the job as DA lightly because it’s a huge responsibility.

“I went to bed, and I woke up with the thought: How can I serve the people of Dallas County? How can I do better today than I did yesterday?” she said.

Johnson says she hopes history sees her as an exceptional leader who is compassionate, hardworking and a woman of her word.