Dallas County Assistant DA Honored for Fighting Fraud, Arson

Kyson Johnson, a special assistant in the specialized crime division of the Dallas County District Attorney’s Office, has been named Prosecutor of the Year by A Texas Advisory Council on Arson (ATAC). Johnson was honored for his work in fighting cases of arson and insurance fraud in Texas.

Johnson received the award in ceremonies held in Austin at the 53rd Annual Texas Fire and Arson Investigators Seminar. David Mitchell, ATAC president and regional claims manager for the Republic Group, presented the award to Johnson.

Johnson is the first prosecutor from the Texas Department of Insurance’s Fraud Unit to work for a district attorney in the fight against insurance fraud.

An Iraq war veteran, Johnson presented 24 cases for indictment dealing with insurance fraud, theft and securing execution of a document by deception during his first three months with the Dallas County District Attorney’s office.

In 2007, Johnson garnered 52 indictments, 34 convictions, $54,000 in fines and $641,000 in restitution.

His most notable case in 2007 dealt with a staged accident ring where he successfully convicted all nine defendants who had staged 72 automobile accidents in the Dallas/Fort Worth area and had defrauded 21 insurance companies.

Johnson’s convictions also made the Texas Department of Insurance’s Top 10 cases with his prosecution in 2007 of insurance agent Larry Crenshaw. Crenshaw was convicted on theft charges for taking money from policyholders. Crenshaw was ordered to refund his clients $202,000 and spend his next two years behind bars.

In his past three years in the Dallas County District Attorney’s Office, Johnson has returned 148 indictments, 91 convictions, $117,000 in fines and $3.6 million in restitution.

ATAC has approximately 200 members that include fire, police, industrial and insurance representatives. The ATAC Arson Hotline number is 1-877-4-FIRE-45 (1-877-434-7345).

Source: Insurance Council of Texas, www.insurancecouncil.org