The Public’s Dime

The South Carolina Supreme Court imposed disbarment without credit for time served on an interim suspension

On September 18, 2018, Respondent was indicted by a federal grand jury on twenty-six counts of wire fraud, mail fraud, conspiracy, and theft of federal funds. In addition, on September 20, 2018, Respondent was indicted by the State Grand Jury on three counts of misconduct in office and embezzlement of public funds. At the time of these indictments, Respondent was the Solicitor for the Fifth Judicial Circuit, and the charges stem from Respondent misusing office funds for personal expenses.

On February 26, 2019, Respondent pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud in federal court. The remaining federal charges were dismissed. On June 4, 2019, Respondent was sentenced to one year and a day in federal prison to be followed by supervised release for three years. Respondent was ordered to pay $19,270.80 in restitution to the Kershaw County Solicitor’s Office. Respondent was released from federal prison in May 2020. Respondent’s state criminal charges are still pending. Respondent has pleaded not guilty to all of the pending state charges.

Details on the offense from a press release of the United States Attorney for the District of South Carolina

Facts presented in court established that Daniel Edward Johnson was the Fifth Circuit Solicitor from 2011 to 2018.  The Solicitor’s Office serves both Richland and Kershaw Counties and receives funding from both, as well as from the federal government.  Kershaw County pays the office-related credit card bills for select Solicitor’s Office employees. 

During his time as Solicitor, Johnson used Solicitor’s Office funds to cover personal and non-office-related expenses.  Johnson was issued Solicitor’s Office credit cards reading “DAN JOHNSON, Fifth Circuit Sol Office.”  Using these cards, Johnson made a series of personal and non-office-related purchases, starting no later than 2016.  In pleading guilty to the scheme, Johnson acknowledged that a November 2016 payment by Kershaw County covered personal expenses on the October 2016 credit card statement.  That statement contained the following fraudulent transactions:

• September 7, 2016, charge for $208.79, at the Elara by Hilton Grand Vacations in Las Vegas.
• September 7, 2016, charge for $911.48, at the Doubletree Magic Mile hotel in Chicago.
• October 1, 2016, charge for $685.07, to Copa Airlines, an airline based in Panama.
• October 5, 2016, charge for $137.22, at the Hilton Columbia Center in Columbia, SC.

The attorney consented to disbarment. (Mike Frisch)