Missouri Supreme Court declines to halt August execution of man convicted of killing child
The Missouri Supreme Court has turned aside an appeal by a man scheduled to be executed in August for killing a 6-year-old girl The Missouri Supreme Court has turned aside an appeal by a man scheduled to be executed in August for killing a 6-year-old girl. Johnny Johnson, 45, was convicted of first-degree murder in in the 2002 death of Casey Williamson in suburban St. Louis. He faces execution Aug. 1 unless the courts intervene or Republican Gov. Mike Parson grants clemency. Johnson's lawyers said in the appeal that he is incom Pet ent to be executed because his schizophrenia prevents him from understanding the link between his crime and the punishment. The appeal said Johnson has delusions about the devil using his death to bring about the end of the world. The Missouri Attorney General's Office challenged the credibilty of the psychiatric evaluation and said medical records indicate that Johnson is able to manage his mental illness through medication. The state Supreme Co...