Retired Judge Fatally Shoots Himself at Home

Police set up a command post at Village Baptist Church on Mitchellville Road during the incident, blocking off roads throughout the neighborhood. A negotiating team tried to talk to the gunman.

Witnesses said they heard two loud blasts about 8 p.m., which apparently were flash grenades used as a tactic by police.

Johnson was born and raised in Richmond, graduated from what is now Prairie View A&M University in Texas, and was an Army Green Beret who served two tours in Vietnam during his decorated 23-year military career, according to a Circuit Court biography. He graduated from Georgetown University Law Center, was admitted to the Maryland bar in 1978 and served as an assistant public defender and in private practice before he was appointed to the Circuit Court bench in 1982.

While a judge, Johnson was known for working 10- to 11-hour days and for his sober and intent demeanor in the courtroom.

Chief Administrative Judge William D. Missouri described Johnson as the father of two daughters and a son, and as a mentor to whom he turned for advice on legal issues, personnel and the supervision of judges, "which is like herding cats. He was always very supportive. When you're in that position, you need a group of people you can talk to, and he was the first I'd turn to."

Johnson was known for running a strict courtroom and for becoming impatient with attorneys who he believed were unprepared.

"He didn't tolerate people being lax in his courtroom," Missouri said. However, he added: "No one can ever say he was ever unfair to them. His courtroom was run with military precision. He was really one of the most caring people on the bench."

Missouri said last night that yesterday's events would never have occurred if Johnson had not been ill.

"It was out of character for him," Missouri said. "The person I heard about today was not the person I've known all these years." In recent weeks, he said, Johnson had even joked about the challenges he faced, telling him, " 'My problem is remembering things.' "

"The older I get," Jack B. Johnson said last night, "the more I understand that these things happen to a lot of good people.

"We don't know what [other] people are going through," he said.

Staff researcher Meg Smith and staff writers Ruben Castaneda and Allan Lengel contributed to this report.