Former U.S. Attorney Brendan V. Johnson for district of South Dakota

12/29/2015

Attorney Brendan V. Johnson

Partner

c/o Robins Kaplan LLP

800 LaSalle Avenue, Suite 2800

Minneapolis, MN  55402

Dear Attorney Johnson,

My name is Matthew Winick from Ann Arbor, Michigan with a strong interest in history and learning about public policy. The main reason I have a strong interest in these subjects is to learn the need to advance on Civil Rights to help protect people who are different from being discriminated, protect the environment from pollution, have checks and balances in the criminal justice system to reduce crime while protecting people’s civil liberties, and many others. The main reason I’m writing you a letter is because I find your work as U.S. Attorney for district of South Dakota and your father former U.S. Senator Tim Johnson of South Dakota to be very inspiring to me.

When you were U.S. Attorney for district of South Dakota in 2009-2015, I liked on how you advocated for the need to expand on Civil Rights including combating against hate crime laws to help protect women, minorities, people with disabilities, and people with different sexual orientation from being discriminated.   Your approach on advocating to have programs to help protect women including victims of domestic violence, supporting treatment programs to help them get the care they need to recover from trauma, and prosecuting people who commit domestic violence is common sense and a great way to reduce domestic violence while helping victims of crime get the care they need.  On Native Americans issues, I was very proud of how you teamed up with President Obama and U.S. Attorney Tim Purdon from North Dakota on finding ways to improve public safety in tribal communities by working with tribal police officers to help them get assistance they need to reduce crime along with improving government relations with Native American tribal communities and implement leadership training for Native American youth to drive them away from drugs and crime.  When your father Tim Johnson served as U.S. House of Representative from South Dakota At-large district, I liked on how he supported the American With Disabilities Act of 1990 to help protect people with disabilities from being discriminated in education and public places. In the U.S. Senate, I was very proud on how he supported getting funds for renewable energy sources like wind, solar, biofuel, and energy efficient products to reduce addiction to oil with gas and push for conservation to help protect national parks including Native American reservations or communities from being disturbed or polluted.  To improve the economy, I liked on how he voted in favor of The American Recovery Act to create job –training programs to help train workers including youth on developing job skills.

I have Autism with a learning disability and having a disability is hard for me because I have trouble with comprehending on learning different subjects, and other people tease me. Your work as U.S. Attorney on advocating for expanding on Civil Rights including protecting people who are different from hate crime inspires me to work hard on Autism. Also your role as U.S. Attorney inspired me to be interested in taking a criminal justice class to learn more about the court systems, Miranda rights, need for checks and balances, how law enforcement works, and need to help protect people including victim’s rights along with more history classes to learn the need for reform.  Your father former U.S. Senator Tim Johnson’s support for the ADA helped me get an education in elementary school through my community college by having accommodations like extra time on exams, have a tutor or a T.A. work with me on different subjects, and have educational software including a recorder to help me improve on comprehension along with improve on note-taking. The ADA helped me get an Associates Degree in Liberal Arts at Washtenaw Community College and my main focus in it is history, government, criminal justice, some science, and some business.  Also U.S. Senator Tim Johnson’s support for the American Recovery Act helped me get into a job-training program called the B-Side of Arts at EMU College of Business in 2009 where they had lectures about how business works and different classes to help me along with other people develop job skills. The American Recovery Act helped me improve myself, learn different job skills, and helped me understand how some business works.

Attorney Johnson, you and your father Senator Tim Johnson made a great difference for me through both of your roles. Also both of you inspired me to be interested in learning different subjects especially history and to work hard on Autism.  I was wondering if you could please forward my letter praising Senator Tim Johnson to him. I’m sending a photo of me to remind you and your father on how you made a great impact on me. Thanks for taking the time to read my letter, inspiring me, and making a great difference for society.

Sincerely,

Matthew B. Winick