Matthew Steven Johnson

Biography Early life Born into a family that included nine other siblings, Johnson, a twin, grew up in Hartford's Blue Hills and Asylum Hill neighborhoods. At 12, he lost sight in one eye when he was shot with a pellet gun. He was described as a very sweet child, but exhibited immature behavior, such as sucking his thumb when asked to do something he did not want to do. His kindergarten teacher later stated to a psychologist that he was highly aggressive and unable to cope with denial.

By the time he was a teenager, he had been admitted to the Connecticut Children's Medical Center and repeatedly evaluated. Although he was noted for doing well in music and physical education, Johnson had a limited academic ability due to his intellectual disability and also suffered from seizures, which had to be medicated. His recorded IQ is 69.

Crimes At 19, while living in a home for troubled youth, Johnson tried to kill a security guard during an attempted robbery inside Asylum Hill's Cathedral of St. Joseph. He was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment for this attack, but only served four. Before that, in May 1980, he robbed and assaulted a pregnant woman.