Johnny E. Morrison
{{Short description|American judge}}
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| name = Johnny E. Morrison
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| spouse = Cynthia P. Morrison
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| residence = Portsmouth, Virginia
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| occupation = Judge, Circuit Court
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Johnny E. Morrison is a judge for the Third Circuit of Virginia and the chief judge for the Portsmouth City Circuit Court.
Career
In 2015, Morrison was reelected for an eight-year term.
In September 2019, Morrison approved the condemnation of the buildings at the Portsmouth Civic Center Complex, but allowed the Portsmouth City Jail located at the complex to continue operating.{{cite news |last1=Watson |first1=Evan |last2=Johncola |first2=Amanda |title=Judge approves condemnation of Portsmouth Civic Center Complex, jail ruling still to come |url=https://www.13newsnow.com/article/news/local/mycity/portsmouth/judge-approves-comdemnation-for-portsmouth-civic-center-complex-except-jail/291-fcb717a6-6863-4167-82ba-af9e35ccaa5b |access-date=22 October 2022 |publisher=13 News Now |date=September 25, 2019}} The city sheriff argued that it was the city's job to maintain the jail and stated the city had not maintained the building. In January 2020, Morrison ruled that the city could not close the jail, stating that the jail must be "repaired and maintained."{{cite news |last1=Watson |first1=Evan |title=Judge rules Portsmouth City Jail cannot be closed, negating city council resolution |url=https://www.13newsnow.com/article/news/local/mycity/portsmouth/judge-rules-portsmouth-city-jail-cannot-be-closed-negating-recent-city-council-resolution/291-f0654419-32f6-45c9-b95c-697d1a3a8214 |access-date=22 October 2022 |publisher=13 News Now |date=March 13, 2020}} In March 2020, the Portsmouth City Council voted 4-3 in favor of closing the jail due to its poor conditions. Following the vote, Morrison ruled once again that the jail could not be closed, despite the decision of the city council.
Personal life
In 2021, Morrison received a kidney transplant after his next-door neighbor, Virginia House of Delegates member Don Scott donated one of his kidneys to Morrison.{{cite news |last1=Schneider |first1=Gregory S. |title=Troubled past charts unlikely rise to power for Virginia Democrat |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2022/06/12/virginia-house-democrats-don-scott/ |access-date=22 October 2022 |publisher=Washington Post |date=June 12, 2022}}{{cite news |last1=Fox |first1=Andy |title=Portsmouth delegate and judge forge a bond through a special gift: a kidney donation |url=https://www.wavy.com/news/local-news/portsmouth/portsmouth-delegate-and-judge-forge-a-bond-through-a-special-gift-a-kidney-donation/ |access-date=22 October 2022 |publisher=Wavy |date=September 16, 2021}} He is married to Cynthia P. Morrison, who serves as the Clerk of the Portsmouth City Circuit Court.{{cite news |last1=Daugherty |first1=Scott |title=Portsmouth’s circuit court clerk hasn’t faced a challenger in 16 years. Now she has two. |url=https://www.pilotonline.com/government/elections/vp-nw-elx-profile-portsmouth-circuit-clerk-20191030-z45wffvjw5c3vpckgi3virbudm-story.html |access-date=22 October 2022 |publisher=The Virginian-Pilot |date=October 30, 2019}}
References
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Category:20th-century African-American lawyers
Category:21st-century African-American lawyers
Category:20th-century American lawyers
Category:21st-century American judges
Category:Virginia circuit court judges