The Donald A. Johnston papers document extensively criminal court proceedings in Kent County, particularly between 1989 and 2012. A substantial breadth of materials pertaining to trials brought before Johnston for more than twenty years offer insight into crime rates, criminal law, and the nature of sentences levied against convicted persons in the greater Grand Rapids area. Documents in the Johnston files also follow the progress of trials later referred to appellate courts in Michigan, including both the Court of Appeals and the Michigan Supreme Court, as well as sentences with which Johnston disagreed. Finally, Johnston's correspondence captures the interactions of the judge with legal professionals and the public at large.
Donald Allerton Johnston III was born February 25, 1944 in Norfolk, Virginia. He was the only child of Donald A. Johnston, Jr. (University of Michigan B.A., 1934) and Harriet M. (Wolfs) Johnston, who met as students at the University of Michigan. At the time of Donald A. Johnston III's birth, Donald A. Johnston Jr. served at the Little Creek Amphibious Base near Norfolk, VA. He was later shipped out for the Pacific and fought at Iwo Jima and Okinawa. After the War the family returned to Michigan, settling in Detroit and later residing in Birmingham. The future Judge Johnston graduated from Birmingham's Wylie E. Groves High School in 1962.
In 1966, Johnston earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in history from the University of Virginia. He subsequently pursued the study of law at Wayne State University, receiving a juris doctorate cum laude and with silver key in 1969. On June 2 of that year, Johnston began his legal career in West Michigan, joining the staff of the Kent County Prosecuting Attorney as a law clerk. His skillful handling of a high volume of trial and appellate cases later garnered Johnston the positions of Deputy Assistant Prosecuting Attorney and Chief Assistant Prosecuting Attorney; the first decade of his career also saw the future judge specialize in arguing cases before the Michigan Supreme Court. Johnston's campaign for Prosecuting Attorney in 1976, however, proved unsuccessful.
On February 19, 1979, Governor William G. Milliken appointed Johnston to a vacant judgeship in the 61st District Court in Grand Rapids. Judge Johnston was elected to a full term in 1980 and retained his post in the 1986 election. By vote of his district court colleagues, Johnston was selected as Chief Judge Pro Tempore in 1979; he served as the court's Chief Judge in 1980 and for four additional terms that decade.
When Judge Stuart Hoffius announced his retirement from Kent County's 17th Circuit Court in 1988, Judge Johnston ran successfully to replace him; he subsequently won reelection in 1994, 2000, 2006, and 2012. Assigned to the court's Criminal/Civil Division, Johnston served as Chief Judge Pro Tempore from 2004 to 2009; from 2010 to 2015, he held the post of 17th Circuit Court Chief Judge by appointment of the Michigan Supreme Court. In October 2015, Johnston was reappointed to this position for a two year term to commence January 1, 2016. During his tenure as Chief Judge, Johnston advocated for the addition of judges to the court to reduce overcapacity judicial workloads and expedite the resolution of cases, attempting to align his court more fully with state recommendations.
Judge Johnston extensively involved himself in professional development and organizations during his time on the bench. A member of numerous bar and judicial associations, he graduated from the National Judicial College and the Michigan Judicial Institute, serving on the faculty of the latter on several subsequent occasions. In his capacity as a member of the Michigan State Bar, he chaired its Standing Committee on Standard Criminal Jury Instructions. In 2011, Johnston began a term of service on Michigan's Council on Law Enforcement and Reinvention (CLEAR) by appointment of Governor Rick Snyder.
With his wife, the former Shaula Woodall, Judge Johnston has three adult children and four grandchildren.
