Edward Earl Johnson

Edward Earl Johnson (June 22, 1960 – May 20, 1987) was a man convicted in 1979 at the age of 19 and subsequently executed by the U.S. state of Mississippi for the murder of a policeman, J.T. Trest, and the attempted rape of a 69-year-old woman, Sally Franklin. During his eight years on death row, he publicly pleaded his innocence. Johnson was executed by gas chamber.

Life Johnson was born on June 22, 1960, at the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson, Mississippi. He was born six weeks premature and spent the first month of his life in an incubator at the hospital. He later lived in Walnut Grove, Carthage, Mississippi.

Johnson was diagnosed as an alcoholic who suffered from alcoholic blackouts. He was later also diagnosed with antisocial personality disorder.

According to Johnson's clemency petition, he had initially wanted to become a basketball star, but later decided that he wanted to become a police officer. After leaving school, he took an aptitude exam for law enforcement.

Crime In the early morning hours of June 2, 1979, 69-year-old Sally Franklin was assaulted in her own home after her attacker gained access via a window. Franklin later identified her attacker at trial as Edward Earl Johnson.

Shortly after, a neighbor found the body of Town Marshall J.T. Trest on the ground near his patrol car, which was parked near Franklin's home. He had been shot three times and killed. Johnson was arrested that afternoon and later released. The confession allowed the police to find Marshall Trest's revolver, which had gone missing after the murder. Johnson also reportedly confessed to a fellow inmate in the county jail named Sammy Jamison. Jamison would testify against Johnson at his trial. Shortly before his execution, Johnson told Cabana that he was innocent. However, he also said he "regretted the whole situation," had no ill will for anyone, and was relieved that the legal process was coming to a close. It was the second execution by the state of Mississippi since the Gregg v. Georgia decision, the first being that of Jimmy Lee Gray, and the 72nd overall in the United States.

Documentary Johnson's case came to international attention when he was featured in the BBC documentary Fourteen Days in May. Broadcast in 1987, the documentary showed the last two weeks of Johnson's life. It starts on May 6, the day that Johnson learns the date of his execution. During interviews, Johnson said he confessed to the murder, but claimed he was forced by police in a deserted wood while they were threatening to shoot him.