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[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 2 (Wednesday, January 7, 2009)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E34]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

                        HONORING RANDALL JOHNSON

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. LYNN A. WESTMORELAND

                               of georgia

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, January 7, 2009

  Mr. WESTMORELAND. Madam Speaker, at the end of 2008, a great Georgia 
lawman turned in his badge to retire after a long, distinguished 
career.
  Randall Johnson worked for Fayette County as sheriff for 32 years. At 
his retirement, he was one of the longest serving sheriffs in the state 
of Georgia. But more important, he was one of the most distinguished 
sheriffs in Georgia.
  Sheriff Johnson oversaw the department during three decades of 
incredible growth. In the 1970s when Johnson first won election to the 
post, the Fayette Sheriff's Department has less than a dozen employees 
in a county then considered a rural outpost. By the time he left, the 
department had transformed into a modern law enforcement operation that 
protected a large suburban county in the booming metropolitan Atlanta 
region. Sheriff Johnson acted as a constant, a steady hand and a voice 
of leadership throughout those times of change.
  The sheriff's post fulfilled Johnson's lifelong dream. He said at his 
graduation from Fayette County High School in 1960 that he was going to 
be sheriff one day. He got his start in law enforcement working for the 
state of Georgia, busting moonshine operations along the multitude of 
Georgia's creaks and streams. As testament to the depth of respect he 
holds in the community, some of those moonshiners he arrested decades 
ago showed up at his retirement party to wish him well.
  During my two decades in politics, I've seen a lot of politicians 
come and go. Most are quickly forgotten. It is the rare public official 
who holds the job for three decades. It is even rarer that one 
constantly maintains the integrity, dignity and honesty that Sheriff 
Johnson demonstrated in office.
  I'm well aware that, as I enter my third term in the U.S. House of 
Representatives, I owe a large debt to Sheriff Johnson. I got my start 
in politics in Fayette County as a state representative. No one in the 
county back then won office without the express consent of Sheriff 
Johnson. His support was the Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval for any 
local campaign. He carried great weight not because he carried the 
proverbial big stick but because he had earned the people's trust and 
respect. His loyalty and backing through all these years humbles me.
  In Fayette County, ``sheriff and -Randall Johnson'' are synonymous. 
When he entered a room, everybody knew the sheriff had arrived--even if 
he wasn't wearing his uniform. His presence was a statement in itself 
The county will sorely miss one of the greatest leaders in its history, 
but the department that he has built up will carry on, and its 
continued success will serve as part of Sheriff Johnson's legacy.
  On behalf of the people of Georgia's 3rd Congressional District, I 
want to thank Sheriff Johnson for his lifetime of service to the people 
of Georgia and to Fayette County. He is a great American and an 
inspiration to us all. Best wishes to Sheriff Johnson and his wife Kaye 
as they enter a new phase of life in retirement, a reward that's richly 
deserved.

                          ____________________
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