Missouri

Missouri Executes Man for Murder of Girl, 6

Published

1 year ago

August 1, 2023

Missouri Executes Man for Murder of Girl, 6

A man who abducted a 6-year-old Missouri girl and beat her to death at an abandoned factory decades ago was put to death Tuesday evening, shortly after the US Supreme Court rejected a request to block the lethal injection over arguments he was mentally incompetent. Johnny Johnson, 45, received a a lethal dose of pentobarbital at a state prison in Bonne Terre and was pronounced dead at 6:33pm CDT, authorities said. He was convicted of the July 2002 killing of Casey Williamson in the small St. Louis-area suburb of Valley Park. Johnson had expressed remorse in a brief handwritten statement released by the Department of Corrections hours before the execution, the AP reports. “God Bless. Sorry to the people and family I hurt,” Johnson’s statement said.

The top court, with three justices dissenting, said earlier in a statement that it was rejecting the request to stay the execution plans. Justice Sonia Sotomayor was joined by two other justices in the dissent. In recent appeals, Johnson’s attorneys have said the inmate has had delusions about the devil using his death to bring about the end of the world. “The Court today paves the way to execute a man with documented mental illness before any court meaningfully investigates his competency to be executed,” Sotomayor and the other dissenting justices wrote in a statement when the stay was rejected by the wider court. “There is no moral victory in executing someone who believes Satan is killing him to bring about the end of the world.”

The girl’s disappearance from her hometown of Valley Park on July 26, 2002, set off a frantic search before her body was ultimately found. Casey’s mother had been best friends in childhood with Johnson’s older sister. After Johnson attended a barbecue the night before the killing, Casey’s family let him sleep on a couch in the home where they also were sleeping. In the morning, Johnson lured the girl—still in her nightgown—to the abandoned factory, even carrying her on his shoulders on the walk to the dilapidated site, according to court documents. When he tried to sexually assault her, Casey screamed and tried to break free, they said. He then killed her with a brick and a large rock, then washed off in the nearby Meramec River. Johnson confessed that same day to the crimes, according to authorities.

At Johnson’s trial, defense lawyers had presented testimony showing that their client—an ex-convict who had been released from a state psychiatric facility six months before the crime—had stopped taking his schizophrenia medication and was acting strangely in the days before the slaying. In June, the Missouri Supreme Court denied an appeal seeking to block the execution on arguments that Johnson had schizophrenia that prevented him from understanding the link between his crime and the punishment. (Read more Missouri stories.)

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Missouri

Vote: Who should be Missouri high school Athlete of the Week? (11/25/2024)

Published

3 hours ago

November 25, 2024

Press Room

Vote: Who should be Missouri high school Athlete of the Week? (11/25/2024)

Which Missouri high school athlete had the best week?

Each week, SBLive scours the state for the top fall and winter sports performers, from football to basketball from all contests in the week of Nov. 17-23. That included the state championships in boys soccer this past weekend.

Congrats to SLUH‘s Connor Dunker, who ran away as the leading vote-getter with 56% of the votes to win SBLive‘s Missouri Athlete of the Week for Nov. 11-16.

The junior won the 200-yard freestyle and was on the winning 400-yard freestyle relay. He also two medals for the Jr. Bills by taking third in the 500-yard freestyle and on the 200-yard freestyle relay.

Scroll down, read up on the nominees and cast your vote for your winner. Voting closes Sunday, Dec. 1 at 11:59 p.m. Central time.

If you would like to make a nomination in a future weeks, email swanson@scorebooklive.com.

MISSOURI ATHLETE OF THE WEEK NOMINEES

Henry Acorn, Rockhurst cross country

Competing in the Nike Cross Midwest Regional Championship on Sunday, the Virginia signee took sixth place. The Hawklets took second overall and advanced to the Nike National Championship.

Addilyn Amos, Troy Buchanan girls wrestling

Competing in her first Schuman Scramble, the team’s home meet, the freshman went 5-0 with five pins — three in the first period.

Terance Bills, Lafayette Wildwood football

The junior wide receiver caught a pair of touchdowns — 25 and 27 yards — in a 30-18 win over Cardinal Ritter in the Class 5 playoffs on Saturday.

Anna Bowles, Francis Howell girls wrestling

The junior posted a 5-0 mark to take first place for the Vikings at the St. Clair Scramble. She won the 125-pound title with five tech falls. Francis Howell won the team title as well.

Nic Calvaruso, Jefferson City Helias Catholic football

The junior booted a 36-yard field goal in OT to help the Crusaders claim a 24-21 win over Republic on Saturday, avenging a loss in the playoffs last year to the Tigers.

Jack Cooley, Hamilton Penney football

The running back scored twice and added an interception that led to a touchdown in the Hornets’ 35-13 win over North Platte in a district title game on Friday.

Zyree Collins, St. Mary’s South Side boys basketball

The Dragons scoring standout picked up where he left off last year. He scored 27 points, hitting 10 of 11 2-point shots, in an 86-34 St. Pius X Festus on Nov. 22.

Jackson Crews, St. Joseph Bishop LeBlond football

In what was a crazy finish to an 8-man game, LeBlond intercepted a hail mary at the buzzer and ran it back and then the senior got a lateral pitch and scored to give the Eagles a 60-54 win over Rock Port on Friday.

Jacob Eberhart, Kirkwood football

The wide receiver had seven catches for 158 yards and a touchdown and also had his first rushing touchdown of the season as the Pioneers beat Jackson on Friday.

Will Geary, Valley Park boys soccer

One of the best soccer players ever in MSHSAA capped off his career by leading the Hawks to the Class 1 title. He tied the state tournament record with 5 goals in a semifinal win and then added 2 goals and an assist in the title win. He broke the MSHSAA championship site record for most goals (7) and most points (15 points).

Josie Hosea, Kirkwood girls wrestling

At the Lady E. Ford Memorial Tournament in Affton, Hosea took first place in the 190-pound bracket. She won four of the five by pins in the first period.

Loganne Love, Principia girls basketball

The freshman had a double-double with 21 points and 10 rebounds on Saturday in a 79-42 win over St. Pius X (Festus) in Farmington.

Colton Miller, Adrian football

In the Class 1 District 3 championship game, he threw a touchdown, ran for a touchdown and kicked the game-winning field goal for the Blackhawks in a 17-16 win over Marionville.

Roman Miller, Seneca football

In a 55-26 win over Mount Vernon in the Class 3 quarterfinals, Miller accounted for three touchdowns on the ground for the Indians.

Jonathan Moore, Lutheran North football

The sophomore became the Crusaders’ single-season record holder for touchdowns in a season with 35, which happened during a playoff game on Saturday.

Sheek Pearson, John Burroughs boys basketball

The 6-foot-10 junior dropped in 20 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in a 72-57 win over Ladue Horton Watkins on Nov. 22.

Henry Sanders, SLUH boys soccer

The junior midfielder had the lone goal in 1-0 win against Liberty North in a Class 4 semifinal game on Friday. SLUH then beat De Smet on Saturday to win the state title.

Alyzah Scaggs, Festus girls basketball

The Lady Tigers got 25 points from the junior in a 64-49 win over West County (Leadwood) in the Farmington Tournament on Saturday. Scaggs drained six 3-pointers on the night.

Dane Schlotzhauer, Tipton football

The junior connected with Paxton Pyle for the game-winning touchdown with less than a minute left to give the Cardinals a 42-36 win over Harrisburg to claim Class 1 District 2 finals. It was the first district crown for Tipton since 2012.

Sadie Sehnert, Wright City girls wrestling

The junior didn’t have to wrestle for more than 1:05 in her five matches on Saturday at the Wright City Invitational. She had two pins in 30 seconds or less to win the 135-pound bracket.

Jordan Speiser, Lutheran St. Charles girls basketball

The Lady Cougars picked up a 61-57 win over Alton, Ill., on Saturday behind Speiser’s 29-point effort. The Kansas State signee went 10-for-10 from the free-throw line and hit 5 3-pointers.

Carter Temple, Kearney football

The Bulldogs starting quarterback ran for four touchdowns as the Bulldogs won their 24th straight in a 49-14 triumph over Warrensburg on Friday.

Seaton Thompson, Ladue Horton Watkins boys soccer

He stopped every shot in the state semifinals and finals and helped the Rams win the Class 3 title. He had shutouts in both wins.

Wyatt Vincent, Nixa football

He caught the game-winning touchdown with 10.4 left in the fourth to help the Eagles rally for a 21-20 win over Lee’s Summit North in a Class 6A playoff game.

Niko Vuong, Clayton boys soccer

The junior scored a goal in a 4-0 win over Logan-Rogersville in the semifinals and added a goal in a 3-0 win over St. Michael the Archangel in the Class 2 finals on Nov. 21. The state title was the first for the Greyhounds.

Editor’s Note: Our Athlete of the Week feature and corresponding poll are intended to be fun, and we do not set limits on how many times a fan can vote during the competition. However, we do not allow votes that are generated by script, macro or other automated means. Athletes who receive votes generated by script, macro or other automated means will be disqualified

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Missouri

Live Updates: Missouri Men’s Basketball vs. Arkansas Pine Bluff

Published

11 hours ago

November 24, 2024

Press Room

Live Updates: Missouri Men’s Basketball vs. Arkansas Pine Bluff

Missouri men’s basketball just keeps rolling.

The Tigers strung together their fifth straight win, this time defeating Arkansas Pine Bluff in a 112-64 blowout at home Sunday afternoon. The second half struggles that have typically come to bite them didn’t appear, instead pushing the same offensive pace until the very end of the contest.

Junior Mark Mitchell was the star of the show for Missouri. The forward scored a season-high 20 points on 8-of-11 shooting, paired with five rebounds and a block. Although not a threat on the perimeter, his offensive prowess inside the paint gives the Tigers a consistent option.

Graduate senior Caleb Grill continued his dominance from behind the arc, dropping 14 points on 5-of-9 shooting from the field and 4-of-8 shooting from 3-point range. Senior Tamar Bates also added 13 points of his own on 5-of-8 shooting from the field.

Perhaps the most impressive performance of the night, however, came from sophomore Anthony Robinson II. The guard was everywhere on both sides of the ball, recording a double-double of 11 points, 11 rebounds, seven assists and a block on 3-of-7 shooting from the field.

It was the first double-double of Robinson’s young career at Missouri.

The Tigers did struggle to shoot the 3-pointer compared to previous games, finishing with just a 9-of-32 clip. That was negated by their 54 points in the paint, as well as their ability to prevent the Golden Lions from having success in their own right.

Arkansas Pine Bluff shot 9-of-28 from three — a more efficient night of shooting, but on less attempts compared to Missouri. It also turned the ball over 19 times, allowing the Tigers 33 easy points off them.

Missouri also had an uncharacteristically good game under the basket, grabbing 19 offensive rebounds that resulted in 24 second-chance points. Five of those rebounds came from Robinson.

Before Thanksgiving arrives, the Tigers will go up against Lindenwood at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday in Mizzou Arena.

Arkansas Pine Bluff
Christian Moore	Anthony Robinson II
Zach Reinhart Advertisement	Tamar Bates
Caleb Jones	Annor Boateng
Klemen Vuga	Mark Mitchell Advertisement
Quentin Bolton Jr.	Josh Gray

Who: Missouri Tigers (4-1, 0-0 SEC) vs. Arkansas Pine-Bluff Golden Lions (1-5, 0-0 SWA)

What: Missouri’s sixth game of the 2024-’25 season

Where: Mizzou Arena in Columbia, Mo.

When: Sunday, November 24, 4:00 p.m.

TV: ESPN+, SECN+

Radio: Tiger Radio Network

Series: Missouri leads 3-0

Last Meeting: Nov. 6, 2023: Missouri opened the season with a 101-79 win over Arkansas Pine-Bluff. Five different players scored over 15 points for Missouri, including Sean East II, Nick Honor, Noah Carter, Caleb Grill and Tamar Bates.

Last Time Out, Missouri: The Tigers handled business in a 91-56 win over Pacific. Guard Caleb Grill continued a hot streak, leading the team with 25 points, including 21 from three-point makes. Grill also notched a career-high with five steals.

Last Time Out, Arkansas Pine-Bluff:The Golden Lions fell on the road to Texas Tech, losing 98-64. Arkansas Pine-Bluff shot 52.1% from the field while Texas Tech shot 59.7%. The Golden Lions were led by guard Christian Moore with 20 points.

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