SMITHFIELD, N.C. — A member of a local school board in central North Carolina has been sentenced to active prison time after being found guilty of extortion and other serious offenses, including blackmailing a congressional candidate.
After a trial that concluded on Friday, jurors determined that Ronald Lee Johnson Jr. was guilty of four charges. Superior Court Judge Joseph Crosswhite imposed a sentence of 6 to 17 months in prison for a felony obstruction charge, according to court documents. Additionally, the sentences for the extortion charge and two counts related to his failure to fulfill his duties included probation requirements.
Judge Crosswhite also ruled that the 41-year-old Johnson should be removed from his position on the Johnston County school board. At one time regarded as a promising figure within the Republican Party, Johnson had narrowly secured reelection in November.
Furthermore, the court revoked Johnson’s law enforcement certification. A former police officer in Smithfield, he lost his job in late 2022 over accusations of “detrimental personal conduct,” according to local media.
Special state prosecutor Boz Zellinger, who led the prosecution, asserted to Judge Crosswhite that Johnson had caused significant harm and that a prison sentence was justified given the circumstances.
Johnson was accused of using threats in 2022 to exploit a compromising audio recording of congressional candidate DeVan Barbour, insisting that Barbour persuade a mutual acquaintance to publicly deny any involvement in an extramarital affair with him. Barbour, who ran unsuccessfully for congressional office in both 2022 and 2024, testified during the trial that the anxiety surrounding the potential release of the recording plagued him throughout the 2022 GOP primary. He admitted to repeatedly urging the woman to deny the alleged affair with Johnson.
While testifying, Johnson claimed that he had not pressured Barbour to obtain a statement from the woman; instead, he stated that he informed Barbour about the existence of the recording to assist him. Johnson’s attorney, Amos Tyndall, added that Johnson had not made any public statements or released any recordings concerning Barbour.
The charge of obstruction of justice arose from allegations that Johnson had disposed of potential evidence from his office at a gym once the investigation was underway. The failures to perform his duties were linked to secret recordings made during school board meetings that were conducted out of the public’s sight, along with claims that he sought to retaliate against a former friend by orchestrating a school transfer for the friend’s children. Johnson had previously been censured by the school board for recording closed sessions and attempting to facilitate the transfer of the children.
