The former Philadelphia Police liaison to the LGBT community has been nominated for the Edward J. McLaughlin Award for Distinguished Service to Victims. Deputy Commissioner Stephen Johnson, who served on the LGBT Liaison Committee from July 2010 to late 2012, was nominated by Alison Sprague, executive director of Victim/Witness Services of South Philadelphia. Johnson has been on the board of V/WSSP for nine years and has been a positive attribute, said Sprague. “He has always been a man of integrity and deep commitment to serving the community and victims of crime. He was the obvious choice [for the nomination],” she said. Johnson has been committed to the community, as well as sensitive to its needs, through his police work, added Sprague. “The work he did with us and the fact that he remained on our board, he still stayed involved in day-to-day operations. We did work with him around accessing police services for individuals with limited English proficiency, he was the police liaison for the LGBT Liaison Committee — he is always acting as a bridge between communities who might not be very familiar with the police,” Sprague said. Johnson said he was elated when he was told of his nomination. “I have done some work for the Victim/Witness Services of South Philadelphia and served on the board of directors for years. I was honored that they took the time to recognize me,” he said. Johnson was involved with the LGBT Liaison Committee since it was implemented several years ago and worked with the community to be a constant source of information. He said he hopes to see the committee branch out farther into the community. “I would like to see them have more citywide advocacy, and it was something I discussed with them during my years as the liaison. They were mainly set in the Gayborhood and I wanted them to expand into the Greater Delaware Valley area because people had problems all over the region.” Johnson, who plans to retire later in the year, is currently on sick leave and battling an illness that he is determined to defeat. “I am not retired yet. Unfortunately I am fighting a serious illness and hopefully winning that battle. Once this ordeal is over, I will retire and live a life of leisure. After 36 years of being in law enforcement, I hope to live the life of a normal person.”
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