Missouri carried out the execution of a death row convict identified as Johnny Johnson despite the opposition of Johnson’s attorneys. The attorneys claimed that he was not eligible for the death punishment because he was mentally incompetent.

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Johnny Johnson was given the death penalty for the murder of Casey Williamson, a 6-year-old. According to court documents, before carrying out the horrible act, he kidnapped the young girl and made an attempt to rape her. The execution went forward despite Johnson’s request for clemency, which Republican Governor Mike Parson rejected. The incident was “one of the most horrific” cases Governor Parson has seen in his time in office.

Who was Johnny Johnson?

Johnny Johnson was 45 years old. According to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Johnson was executed by lethal injection on Tuesday night. A representative for the Missouri Department of Corrections confirmed that he was declared dead at 6:33 PM CT, as reported by CNN.

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In a last statement made public by prison authorities, Johnny Johnson acknowledged regret and apologized to the victim’s family. God bless, he murmured. I apologize to the persons and families I offended. Johnson expressed his contrition for his conduct and acknowledged the anguish and suffering he caused to the victim’s family with these comments.

After Johnny Johnson’s plea for a stay of execution was denied by the US Supreme Court, his lethal injection was carried out. Three liberal justices dissented, but the Court nonetheless made its choice. One of the opposing justices, Justice Sonia Sotomayor, highlighted her worries by writing in her opinion, “The Court today paves the way to execute a man with documented mental illness before any court meaningfully investigates his competency to be executed.”

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According to Johnny Johnson’s petition for a writ of certiorari, a neuropsychiatrist who examined him in February came to the conclusion that he had been dealing with “severe mental illness” for a significant amount of time, including a schizophrenia diagnosis.