Despite the guy’s attorneys continuing to assert that he is mentally incompetent, Missouri Governor Mike Parson announced on Monday that the state will move forward with this week’s scheduled execution of a man who kidnapped and killed a 6-year-old girl nearly two decades ago.
The 45-year-old Johnny Johnson will be executed by lethal injection on Tuesday night for the fatal beating of Casey Williamson on July 26, 2022, in her Valley Park, St. Louis County, home.
The U.S. Supreme Court has been urged by Johnson’s counsel to stay the execution. In addition, they requested that Parson commute Johnson’s sentence to life in prison, claiming that his mental state prevented him from recognizing the relationship between his acts and his execution.
Parson turned down the pardon application. He pointed out that Johnson’s incompetency arguments have thus far been rejected by a number of courts, including the initial trial judge and the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals just days ago.
βJohnny Johnsonβs crime is one of the most horrific murders that has come across my desk,β Parson said in a statement. βCasey was an innocent young girl who bravely fought Johnson until he took her life.”
Casey Williamson’s Father Pleads
Former sheriff Parson stated that he had received “countless letters in the last few weeks seeking justice for Casey” and expressed the hope that carrying out the execution “may provide some closure for Casey’s loved ones.”
Casey Williamson’s father, Ernie Williamson, is against the death penalty, according to Johnson’s attorneys in a clemency appeal. However, other family members pleaded with the governor to carry out the execution.
Della Steele, Casey’s great aunt, wrote to Parson to emphasize that Johnson had every opportunity to turn around but instead decided to kidnap, assault, and kill Casey before practically covering up his crime. She stated in the message, which she shared with The Associated Press, that the anguish over Casey’s passing resulted in negative things happening in the lives of other family members.
Please be steadfast Casey’s side, Steele pleaded. “Get rid of this threat so we can continue. Send the message that terrorizing and killing children is never acceptable.”
The tweet below verifies the news:
Missouri Gov. Mike Parson has denied a clemency request from a man scheduled to be executed for the 2002 death of a 6-year-old girl. https://t.co/3Pt5zugET0
— ABC News (@ABC) August 1, 2023
Johnson’s older sister and Casey’s mother were childhood closest friends, and Casey’s mother even volunteered to watch Johnson. Casey’s family allowed Johnson to spend the night at the same home where they were staying when he showed up at a BBQ, sleeping on a couch.
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In the morning, however, Johnson persuaded the girl to leave the house and travel with him to an abandoned glass factory. Casey screamed and attempted to escape as he attempted to sexually abuse her, according to court records. He used a brick and a sizable boulder to kill her, after which he washed his hands in the adjacent Meramec River. On the spot, Johnson admitted to the crimes.
First responders and volunteers searched for many hours before discovering Casey’s body in a pit not far from her house, covered in boulders and other debris.
At Johnson’s trial, the defense presented evidence that he had stopped taking his medicine for schizophrenia and was behaving oddly in the days prior to the murder.
Johnson would be the 16th person to be put to death nationwide and the fourth in Missouri this year.
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