Christopher Johnson's execution by the State of Alabama creates serious doubts about the justice of a measure that is widely criticized by human rights advocates throughout the world. According to the group Equal Justice Initiative, the Alabama Supreme Court planned the execution without even engaging in a meaningful review of the case.
Christopher Johnson was convicted of killing his son in 2005. Johnson's attorneys claimed that he wasn't guilty by reason of mental disease or defect. However, during the trial, Johnson asked the trial judge for permission to represent himself. Despite ample evidence that Johnson had a long history of mental illness, the judge allowed him to do so. Although during his detention Johnson showed destructive behavior associated with mental illness, the trial judge sentenced Johnson to death. He was executed on Oct. 21, 2011.
Johnson's case had several mitigating circumstances. He was sexually molested by an uncle from age 7 to 12; he started taking drugs at 16; and throughout his childhood he was placed in programs for children with severe behavioral problems.