Pope Urges Clemency for Missouri Death Row Prisoner

Pope Francis and 2 members of Congress person asked Missouri’s politician to halt the scheduled execution connected Tuesday of a 61-year-old man, saying helium should beryllium spared due to the fact that helium is intellectually disabled.

Ernest Lee Johnson, who is connected decease enactment astatine a authorities situation successful Bonne Terre, Mo., for the 1994 execution of 3 convenience store employees, is scheduled to beryllium executed by lethal injection aft 6 p.m. section clip connected Tuesday, his nationalist defender, Jeremy Weis, said connected Monday.

Mr. Weis said that the Missouri Supreme Court successful August denied Mr. Johnson’s petition that helium was ineligible for the decease punishment due to the fact that helium is intellectually disabled. The tribunal besides denied Mr. Johnson’s petition to beryllium executed by firing squad, Mr. Weis said.

On Sept. 27, Pope Francis appealed to Gov. Mike Parson of Missouri to spare Mr. Johnson’s life. On Friday, Representatives Cori Bush and Emanuel Cleaver II, some Democrats of Missouri, besides asked Mr. Parson, a Republican, to spare Mr. Johnson, saying that it would beryllium unconstitutional to execute him due to the fact that of his intelligence disabilities.

The pope’s entreaty was made successful a missive to Mr. Parson from Archbishop Christophe Pierre, the Vatican’s ambassador to the United States. It came 2 years aft Francis changed religion doctrine by declaring that executions were unacceptable successful each cases due to the fact that they are “an attack” connected quality dignity.

In the letter, which was reported by Vatican News, Francis said his entreaty was not “based solely upon Mr. Johnson’s doubtful intelligence capacity.”

“His Holiness wishes to spot earlier you the elemental information of Mr. Johnson’s humanity and the sacredness of each quality life,” Archbishop Pierre wrote.

Mr. Parson’s bureau did not respond to calls and emails, but connected Monday afternoon, the politician said successful a statement that Mr. Johnson would beryllium executed connected Tuesday arsenic scheduled.

“The authorities is prepared to present justness and transportation retired the lawful condemnation Mr. Johnson received successful accordance with the Missouri Supreme Court’s order,” Mr. Parson said.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled successful 2002 that executing intellectually disabled radical is simply a usurpation of the Eighth Amendment’s prohibition connected cruel and antithetic punishment. The past clip Missouri carried retired an execution was successful May 2020, erstwhile Walter Barton was enactment to death by lethal injection for fatally stabbing an 81-year-old pistillate successful 1991.

Using a hammer arsenic a weapon, Mr. Johnson killed 3 convenience store employees — Mary Bratcher, 46; Fred Jones, 58; and Mabel Scruggs, 57 — successful Columbus, Mo., successful February 1994 arsenic helium was robbing the store for wealth to bargain drugs, tribunal documents say. A assemblage successful Boone County, Mo., convicted him successful 2005 connected 3 counts of first-degree execution and sentenced him to death, the documents say.

After respective tribunal challenges implicit the years centering connected Mr. Johnson’s intelligence tests and abilities, the authorities Supreme Court ruled successful August that his recollections of details of the transgression showed helium was capable “to plan, strategize, and occupation lick — contrary to a uncovering of important subaverage intelligence.”

Mr. Johnson was calved successful Steele, Mo., successful 1960 and grew up successful Charleston, Mo., Ms. Bush and Mr. Cleaver wrote successful their letter. His begetter was a sharecropper, they said, and helium was raised chiefly by his grandmother.

Because of his mother’s addictions to intoxicant and drugs, Mr. Johnson was calved with fetal intoxicant spectrum disorder, Ms. Bush and Mr. Cleaver wrote. The Associated Press reported that up to 20 percent of Mr. Johnson’s encephalon insubstantial was removed during an cognition successful 2008 to region a encephalon tumor.

“Mr. Johnson’s execution would beryllium a sedate enactment of injustice,” Ms. Bush and Mr. Cleaver wrote.

In an opinion portion successful The Kansas City Star connected Sunday, Bob Holden, a Democratic erstwhile politician of Missouri, said helium had sent a missive to Mr. Parson seeking clemency for Mr. Johnson. Mr. Holden said that helium supported superior punishment, noting that 20 men were executed during his tenure arsenic governor, from 2001 to 2005.

“I besides realize, however, determination are unsocial occasions erstwhile the radical of our authorities are wisely served by the politician exercising the office’s clemency powers,” Mr. Holden wrote. “The scheduled Oct. 5 execution of Ernest Johnson, I believe, is 1 specified instance.”

Mr. Johnson, helium wrote, had a “paper trail” of intelligence wellness professionals documenting his intelligence disabilities. His encephalon improvement whitethorn person been stymied by fetal intoxicant spectrum disorder, Mr. Holden wrote, citing debased I.Q. scores, adding that his connection skills were “less than those of a emblematic 5-year-old.”

“None of this excuses what Johnson did,” Mr. Holden wrote. “But if our authorities is to beryllium guided by the regularisation of law, we indispensable temper our understandable choler with crushed and compassion for the astir susceptible among us, including Ernest Johnson.”