Valparaiso University Alumnus Becomes U.S. Attorney for Northern District of Indiana

Oct. 20, 2021 – Valparaiso, Indiana – Clifford D. Johnson ’76, ’80 J.D. was sworn in as the United States attorney for the Northern District of Indiana on Oct. 6, following unanimous confirmation by the United States Senate.

“I speak on behalf of the entire Valparaiso University family in saying how proud we are in his elevation to this incredibly important position for the administration of justice in the Northern District of Indiana,” said Jose D. Padilla, J.D., president of Valparaiso University. “Clifford Johnson has been a lifelong servant to this nation and epitomizes the servant leaders we produce here at this University.”

Johnson is the first Black person named to the position in the district. He served the district as assistant U.S. attorney for 34 years, from 1986–2020, and held numerous supervisory and management positions during his tenure. He was the chief of the civil division from 1997–2010 and served as acting U.S. attorney from March 2017 to October 2017.

Previously, he was a trial attorney in the employment litigation section of the Department of Justice’s civil litigation section of the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division in Washington, D.C. from 1980–1985.

Johnson received his J.D. from Valparaiso University Law School in 1980 and his B.A. from Valparaiso University in 1976.