Hearing begins in lawsuit contesting suicide ruling in Canton firefighter’s death

Jan. 17--Tonya Johnson was a God-fearing woman who believed that anyone who committed suicide was damned to an eternity in hell.

That's one reason her oldest son, Trevon Boone, doesn't believe she would take her own life.

"For anyone to say my mom committed suicide is absurd," Boone said Tuesday during a hearing in Summit County Common Pleas Court.

Boone was among the first witnesses in what is expected to be a three-day hearing in a lawsuit that contests the Summit County Medical Examiner's ruling that Johnson's death nearly two years ago -- when she was struck by a vehicle on state Route 8 -- was a suicide. Boone and his siblings argue the death of their mother, a Canton firefighter, should have been classified an accident or undetermined.

At stake is $3 million in life insurance that Guardian Life Insurance refused to pay because of the suicide ruling.

Johnson, 43, died while crossing Route 8 in Akron during rush hour on Feb. 22, 2016. Police said the mother of two young adult sons and a then 12-year-old daughter crossed the southbound lanes climbed the cement divider and was struck by a vehicle in the northbound lanes.

Medical Examiner Lisa Kohler ruled on April 18, 2016, that the cause of Johnson's death was "blunt force trauma to the head" and the manner of death "suicide."

Johnson's family members and friends held a protest outside of Kohler's office after her ruling, insisting that Johnson never expressed suicidal thoughts. They argued Kohler had failed to consider how Johnson had sought a divorce from her husband of eight days and speculated that Johnson may have run across traffic to get away from him after a fight. Two of Johnson's relatives were on their way to get her in Akron when she was hit.

Johnson's family filed a lawsuit last February against the Summit County Medical Examiner's Office, the Akron police officers who investigated Johnson's death, and Guardian Life Insurance. They are seeking a change in the manner-of-death ruling, the removal of suicide references from police reports, as well as the life-insurance payout. The suit also requests damages of more than $5 million plus interest, attorney fees and punitive damages.

"The family wants to clear Tonya Johnson's name and we would like the ruling to appropriately reflect the circumstances," Danielle Pierce, an attorney for the family, said during her brief opening statement.

Assistant Summit County Prosecutor Colleen Sims said the lawsuit isn't about Johnson's life but about her death. She pointed to other people who were highly revered, like Ernest Hemingway and Virginia Woolf, but resorted to suicide. She said Johnson was under severe stress financially -- because of back taxes she owed in her side business -- and had a third failed marriage.

"I don't think Dr. Kohler is trying to put mud on or sully the reputation of Tonya Johnson," Sims said. "Kohler is tasked with uncovering the truth. Maybe in the future we can prevent this from happening, if we can pick up the warning signs."

Boone and Dejon Newell, Johnson's sons, however, insist they saw no warning signs. Newell said he would feel differently if there were signs, such if she had shot herself in the head.

"It's not about the money at all," Newell said. "It's about my mom's legacy. She worked hard every single day helping other people. For her legacy to be tarnished, it doesn't sit well with me."

Boone acknowledged that his mother owed back taxes for her business, In Trusting Care, that assisted people with developmental disabilities, but he said she had a plan to pay the debt by February of this year.

Boone said he didn't approve of his mother marrying Randey Johnson, an exotic dancer and construction worker whom she had only known for a few months, and told her about his reservations.

"She told me she wanted to get right with God," Boone said. "It was either marry him or not be with him."

The couple wed on Feb. 14, 2016, but Boone said his mother soon found out Randey was cheating on her on Facebook and got paperwork for a dissolution. He said his mother and Randey were returning from Cleveland where they planned to get the paperwork notarized when she was struck and killed.

Newell and Boone both said Randey Johnson didn't help plan or attend their mother's funeral and they haven't seen or heard from him since a few days after her death. The husband isn't expected to be called as a witness. He stands to inherit Johnson's pension and her home.

Janelle Duah, who officiated at Tonya and Randey's wedding, said the ceremony was delayed for several hours because Tonya wanted Randey to sign a prenuptial agreement and for it to be notarized. She said Randey didn't know about this before that day and was upset.

When Duah heard about Johnson's death, she called Akron detectives because she didn't think it was suicide.

"I don't believe she would have left her children that way," Duah said.

Canton Firefighter Dan Greer, who worked with Johnson for 15 years, said he had breakfast with her on the morning of her death. He said he wanted to start his own business and Johnson was mentoring him.

"Tonya was the same Tonya I've always known," he said. "The one who wants to suck the marrow out of life and like the Army says 'be all that you can be' and do it boldly like most people are afraid to do."

Testimony will resume Wednesday. After the hearing, Judge Amy Corrigall Jones could decide there is enough evidence for a full trial, that there isn't enough evidence or that the manner of death should be changed.

Stephanie Warsmith can be reached at 330-996-3705, swarsmith@thebeaconjournal.com and on Twitter: @swarsmithabj.

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