Missouri’s governor: Tuesday’s execution of convicted killer Johnson will proceed

Missouri’s governor says a man who was convicted of the gruesome killing of a six-year-old girl in Valley Park 21 years ago will be executed Tuesday evening in Bonne Terre.

Governor Mike Parson has rejected a clemency request from 45-year-old Johnny Johnson, saying the 2002 murder of Casey Williamson “is one of the most horrific murders that has come across my desk.” Governor Parson says Johnson tried to rape Casey in an abandoned glass factory before hitting her in the head with a brick and crushing her skull with a “basketball-sized boulder.”

The Missouri Supreme Court has ordered the execution to take place this evening at the maximum-security prison in Bonne Terre. Barring intervention from the U-S Supreme Court, Johnson will be executed by lethal injection after 6 tonight.

Governor Parson says his office has received countless letters in the last few weeks seeking justice for Casey Williamson. Johnson’s lawyers requested clemency, saying Johnson is not mentally competent to understand why he’s being put to death. Governor Parson disagrees, saying Johnson understands that he’s going to be executed because of his crime.

U.S. Reps. Cori Bush (D-St. Louis) and Emanuel Cleaver (D-Kansas City) urged Governor Parson to grant clemency for Johnson.