(The Center Square) – Col. Freddy Johnson, commander of the North Carolina Highway Patrol, is set to get a five-year appointment beginning July 1 following a judicial panel decision in Wake ...

Johnson, who was appointed by former Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper in 2021, was a defendant in the lawsuit. Cooper was also an original plaintiff.

The law says Stein cannot select his own commander to the State Highway Patrol and, instead, State Highway Patrol Commander Col. Freddy Johnson will keep the job until 2030.

The law says Stein cannot select his own commander to the State Highway Patrol and, instead, State Highway Patrol Commander Col. Freddy Johnson will keep the job until 2030.

Stein challenged the law, which was enacted over Cooper’s veto, for preventing him from being able to appoint a new commander or remove Johnson from the position at any point during the five ...

Colonel Freddy Johnson Jr., commander of the State Highway Patrol, stands among other NC State Highway Patrol officers in the aftermath of Helene on Oct. 9, 2024. A law passed by the GOP-dominated ...