Longtime Edmonton journalist Janice Johnston dies after brief illness
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A longtime Edmonton journalist who broke stories and fought for transparency from police, courts and politicians has died after a brief illness.
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CBC Edmonton announced Janice Johnston’s death from cancer Friday. She was 62.
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Paula Simons, a senator and former Edmonton Journal columnist who was often Johnston’s competitor, said Johnston was an old-school journalist who delighted in scoops and holding powerful people to account.
“She was fierce and she was tough and she was no-nonsense, and when she was on a story — watch out,” Simons said. “Because she didn’t rest until she got to the heart of things.”
Johnston was born in London, Ont., and moved to Edmonton in the 1980s after starting her career in her home province, the CBC reported Friday. Her first job in the city was at CISN as a reporter and later as a news director. She also worked at CFRN-TV as a reporter, and started with the CBC in the early 2000s.
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In recent years, Johnston was an opponent of the Edmonton Police Service policy of refusing to name certain homicide victims, reporting on how the policy created a system in which some homicides — particularly domestic killings — were treated as private secrets rather than public tragedies or policy failures. Chief Dale McFee eventually reversed the policy.
Johnston also broke the story of Angela Cardinal, a pseudonym given to an Indigenous woman and sexual assault victim ordered jailed and shackled to ensure her testimony against sexual predator Lance Blanchard.
More recently, Johnston was part of the team that revealed then-justice minister Kaycee Madu had called Edmonton’s police chief to discuss a distracted driving ticket, leading to Madu’s removal from the role. A retired judge later concluded the call “created a reasonable perception of an interference with the administration of justice.”
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Johnston also authored a multi-part investigation into Dan Behiels, a suspended Edmonton police detective who made bombshell claims about how the service treated his investigations into late landlord and crime figure Abdullah Shah.
While Johnston was a fierce competitor, she was also a gracious colleague, mentoring younger reporters thrown into the stressful world of covering courts.
Janice Johnston, seen in a 2014 file photo, showing off her shoe collection. Photo by Greg Southam /Postmedia 
An undated file photo of Janice Johnston and her husband, Scott. Photo by Supplied
She often spoke on behalf of the media in opposing access restrictions and advocating for the release of documents, on the grounds the public had the right to know what was going on in its justice system.
“She was never afraid to push judges when she thought judges were not following the law, when she thought judges were holding back documents that ought to be public,” Simons recalled. “She held the courts to account, she held the police to account, she held lawyers — both defence and the prosecution — to account.”
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Simons recalled many instances of rushing to the courthouse to obtain some sought-after document — only to find Johnston already in line in front of her.
“I think everybody in the courthouse — if Janice Johnston entered the room — there was a slight chill of fear, because you knew she was going to hold everybody accountable without fear or favour.”
Johnston was married to former 630 CHED city hall reporter Scott Johnston for 36 years. She was also an Earth, Wind & Fire super fan who loved trips to sunshine destinations, as well as designer shoes.
Simons said that while Johnston loved her work, her daughter, Samantha Milles, was her pride and joy. Johnston had also recently become a grandmother.
“We each have an only daughter, and we were each very, deliriously, proud of our daughters,” Simons said. “We would often compare stories, as moms talking about our daughters, and how proud we were of their accomplishments.”
jwakefield@postmedia.com
twitter.com/jonnywakefield
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