"Missouri Executes Killer of 6-Year-Old Girl Despite Mental Illness"

Missouri executed Johnny Johnson, a man convicted of the 2002 abduction and killing of 6-year-old Casey Williamson. Johnson, who had schizophrenia, was put to death by lethal injection after the U.S. Supreme Court rejected a request to block the execution. Despite arguments of mental incompetence, Johnson's attorneys were unsuccessful in their appeals. The girl's family and former prosecutor witnessed the execution. Johnson confessed to the crimes, which involved luring the girl to an abandoned factory, attempting to sexually assault her, and ultimately killing her with a brick and a large rock.