Joseph Robert John Sr. (born October 13, 1939) is a member of the North Carolina House of Representatives, having served since 2017. He is a former judge of the North Carolina Court of Appeals. He served on that court from 1992 until 2000. Previously, he had been a state superior court and state district court judge, based in Greensboro. He had also been a prosecutor and practiced at the firm of Pell, Pell, Weston & John.
Career
In 2010, Judge John was named interim director of the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation crime lab by N.C. Attorney General Roy A. Cooper. He was named to the post on a permanent basis in 2011. John retired in 2014.
He was elected as a Democrat to the North Carolina House of Representatives, District 40, in 2016, defeating incumbent Rep. Marilyn Avila. In 2018, John was re-elected to a second term after defeating Avila in a rematch. John won a third term in 2020, defeating Republican challenger Gerald Falzon.
During his time in office, Joe John has focused on fully funding North Carolina schools, eliminating partisan gerrymandering, and fighting against what he calls the "War on an Independent Judiciary".