After moving to San Francisco, he started his own store, Johnston's Men's Wear, at 916 Market Street.

In 1911 he was appointed to the California State Board of Control, headed by new gubernatorial appointee John Francis Neylan.

[2] He became known for his focus on redeeming offenders and work to improve their lives; for instance, he treated those who needed it for drug abuse, and established educational and employment programs for inmates.

He is credited with challenging some of the harsh tactics used in the prison, including strait jackets and solitary confinement in darkness.

In 1937 he was assaulted by Burton Phillips in the Dining hall, where he customarily ate with the prisoners and was unguarded.

Phillips, convicted of robbery and kidnapping, allegedly beat the warden in anger at a worker's strike.