Warning: Graphic content, readers’ discretion advised. This article contains a recollection of crime and can be triggering to some readers discretion advised.
Johnny A. Johnson (45) is scheduled to be executed on August 1, 2023 for the 2002 murder of 6-year-old Cassandra Lynn Williamson, known as “Casey”, after luring her into an old abandoned glass factory in Valley Park, Missouri and attempting to sexually assault her.
UPDATE (TUESDAY, AUGUST 1, 2023): Johnny Johnson (45) was executed this evening by the State of Missouri. Official time of death was 6:33PM local time. He spoke no last words prior to the execution. In a final written statement submitted to Missouri’s Department of Corrections on July 30, Johnson wrote: ““God Bless. Sorry to the people and family I hurt.” – Johnson was served earlier what was described as a “simple” last meal: a burger, curly fries, and a strawberry milkshake.
UPDATE (SATURDAY, JULY 29, 2023): The stay of execution order for Johnny Johnson last week has been reversed by an appeals court with a 7-3 decision. Johnson’s execution in Missouri is set to proceed as scheduled on August 1st. Johnson’s lawyers are expected to appeal the court’s decision on Monday morning.
UPDATE (TUESDAY, JULY 25, 2023): A federal appeals court has halted Johnny Johnson’s execution set for August 1st. Attorneys for Johnson claim that he isn’t mentally competent to be executed because his schizophrenia prevents him from understanding his crime and the punishment. Missouri’s Attorney General is expected to appeal the ruling and submit a request to the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn the lower-court’s decision.
Little Cassandra Lynn Williamson known to everyone as Casey, was born on thanksgiving day in 1995.
By the year 2002 Casey was six years old and attending kindergaren at Valley park elementary school in missouri
She was the second oldest of four siblings ,her older sister chelsea was 12. elisabeth was four and her little brother ernie , named after his father was two years old .
Casey was said to have a big bright smile
At just six years old she enjoyed attending a protestant church near her home.
She also enjoyed riding he vicycle and singing and she was a huge fan of britney spears.
Casey was the Daughter of Ernie and Angela williamson,casey´s family and friends would never see her graduate from any school.
There would be no family trips with casey to the beach or an amusement park or theaters to see her favorite movie or proms or marriage or seeing casey have her own children.
Because that year of 2002, a monster decided to end her life when she was still just six years old.
Earlier that year casey´s parent´s ernie and angela had separated.
Angela known more as Angie then takes her four children to live with her father , the kid´s grandfather .jim widman on beton street in valley park missouri.
Almost directly across the street from mr weidman´s home lived eddy barrack with his girlfriend michelle Rehm. that couple eddy and michelle were also friends of casey´s parents , ernie and angie.
And not long after angie moved and into her father´s house with the kids ,eddy and michelle agreed to rent a room to casey´s father ernie on the second floor of their house across the street . so that he can be near his cchildren
On Wednesday july 24 2002 , allthough separated from their marriage, Ernie and angie were spending some time toghether on the front porch of angie´s father´s house on benton street ,
when they see an old aquaintance coming up the road.it was 24 year old johnny johnson who ernie and angie have known since they were all children ,they had all gone to school together The three of them talked for a while and then johnny leaves .
later that evening , angie takes the children across the street to eddy and michelle´s hosue so the kids can spend the night with their dad
and when they went inside Johnny johnson was also there.As it turns out johnson was also a friend of michelle´s boyfriend eddy.
sometime later angie took the children up to ernie´s room on the second floor to spend the night and even though ernie and angie are separated from their marriage she ends up staying there all night too.
Early the following orning ,now thursday july 25th, angie wakes up and her daughter casey is not in the room, she goes downstairs and finds johnny johnson and casey sitting on opposite ends of the couch ,watching television
Johnson had apparently slept on the couch overnight. angie asked if casey had awoken him and he told her no, that she´s fine that she wasn´t bothering him
Later that day in the evening everyone was eating food from the grill at eddy and michelle´s home when they saw johnny johnson coming up the road again and they invited him to eat as well. and he ended up staying the night again on the couch.
Angie and the children also stayed again that night up on the second floor with ernie.
At about 6.30 in the morning , now friday july 26th, the alarm goes off for ernie to get ready for work, casey tells her father that she´s hungry. he tells her to let him finish up getting ready in the bathroom and he will take her across the street to her grandfather´s house to find her some food.
ernie then went to the bathroom located downstairs on the first floor.he walked past the couch where he saw johnny johnson asleep on it
Ernie later said that he was in the bathroom for no more than about 15 minutes , he came out and johnny johnson was no longer on the couch, he was gone.
Ernie then went upstairs to get his daughter casey but she was also gone.he wakes up angie and let her know that casey was gone. they wonderered if since casey had said she was hungry Maybe johnny johnson took her to a nearby store to get her something to eat.
Ernie went to the store, they were never there .
He returned quickly and went to his father – in -law´s house across the street to see if casey went in there on her own ,he said that his granddaughter did not enter the house.
That´s when they called 9-1-1
Because casey and johnny johnson had both vanished from the house at about the same time it was presumed that they left together .
The police were looking for both of them ,police began a search for casey and the family´s split up and began searching as well.
Many from around the community learned of the disappearance and also volunteered to join in on the search .
a witness named lewis barnhart learned of the incident and told police that he saw a man with a little girl walking st Louis avenue and 6th street earlier that morning.
Carrying a little girl on his back,piggyback. the little girl fit a description of casey and his description of the man fit that of johnny johnson.
Casey´s older sister chelsea and a friend named angel ,both went looking around on their bicycles and angel spotted johnny johnson walking back toward benton street where everyone lived .
Angel told johnny that they were looking for casey and she asked him”where is casey?” johnson told her that he doesn´t know. angel then quickly finds a police officer and provide johnny johnson´s location since she knew that they were also looking for him.
Police pick up johnson and they find him completely drenched as he had gone swimming with all his clothes on.he is taken to the police station for questioning.
at that time they also bring in the witness lewis barnhart who positively identies johnson as the man he´d seen carrying casey on his back, piggyback earler that morning.
Johnny johnson finally addmited that he had taken casey to the old abandoned Glass factory in valley park but his story about what happened there changed several times during questioning.
At first saying that it was an accident,that he and casey were trying to climb over a rock wall and that she slipped and fell and a rock became dislodged and hit her on the head killing her.
He said he then panicked and buried her .
But when police arrived at the old Glass factory and found casey´s body buried under rocks leaves and tree branches it was obvious to them that casey did not die in the manner that johnson was saying .
now most of what happened that morning comes from johnny johnson´s final confession to police so we may never really know the exact truth of what occurred or the accuracy of that confession
But according to johnson ,he woke up on the couch at eddie and michelle´s home and casey was standing near the couch.
She was wearing her child´s nightgown and she was barefoot, johnson gave her the impressiion that he was about to leave and casey asked him” where are you going?”
Johnson told her that he was going to hang out for a while at the old Glass factory and that it´s a great place to play games and have fun and if she wants to come along and she agreed.
Johnson said that as they were walking along rough ground up the road casey complained that her feet were hurting.remember , she was still barefoot and she agreed to ride on his back , piggyback.
they arrived at the old Glass factory and make their way over a rock wall into a secluded area. kind of a pit located there.
Johnson then stood infront of casey and asked her if she wanted to see his private part and she said no.but he removed his shorts anyway.
He then told her to remove her panties so that he can see hers. but she refused.
Johnson said that he then picked up a brick and hit her on the head several times injuring her.
He then ripped off her panties and threw her to the ground and got on top of her but he says that he was unable to obtain an erection because casey was in his words f reaking out .
she was kicking and screaming and trying desperately to crawl away .
He said he began striking her in the head several more times with the brick as casey was repeatedly saying” i´m sorry, i´m sorry”
Johnson then picked up what has been described as a baseketball sized boulder and brought it down on her head killing her. he then buried her under rocks ,leaves and tree branches.
Johnson then went to the nearby meramec river to wash off blood on his body.
It was not long after that he was picked up by police.
Ernie and angie williamson and the neighbors from across street , eddy and michelle, even knowing that johnny johnson had used drogs,had some legal troubles and was somewhat of a drifter hwo sometimes crashed on the couch of people homes never saw him as a threat of any kind and would never suspect that he would harm a child .
This is what they have said .he appeared mild -mannered amd harmless and they never thought not even a bit that he was capable of doing what he had done.
Several documentaries and podcasts regarding this case , had spent a lot of time discussing johnny johnson´s upbringing,how he had a very hard life,was consuming drugs and how he was suffering from sschizophrenia.
There was a lot of talk about johnny johnson´s mental illness,depression and suicide attempts over the years.
LAST WORDS
Convicted murderer Johnny Johnson’s haunting apology before Missouri execution for death of 6-year-old Casey Williamson
Johnny johnson, 45, received a lethal injection dose of pentobarbital at a state prison in Bonne Terre and was pronounced dead at 6:33 p.m. CDT, authorities said.
A CONVICTED murderer who beat a six-year-old girl to death more than 20 years ago has been executed.
Johnny Johnson, 45, was killed via lethal injection at a prison in Missouri on Tuesday evening.after he was convicted of killing six-year-old Casey Williamson in 2002Credit: AP
Corrections officials have released a brief note Johnson wrote before his death.
“God Bless. Sorry to the people and family I hurt,” he said.
Johnson suffered from schizophrenia and believed the devil was using his death as a way to bring about the end of the world.
He was executed after the US Supreme Court rejected a motion from Johnson’s lawyers to have the execution stayed.
They argued that due to his mental illness, Johnson couldn’t understand the link between his crime and the punishment.