The Missouri Supreme Court upheld a death penalty conviction of a man found guilty of shooting a Kirkwood police officer in 2005, the St. Louis Post Dispatch reported.
A jury found Kevin Johnson, of Kirkwood, guilty of shooting Sgt. Bill McEntee as he sat in his car July 5, 2005. Johnson was given the death sentence for first-degree murder.
The Kirkwood Police Department issued the following statement following the court's decision Tuesday.
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The Kirkwood Police Department supports the recent decision by the Supreme Court of the State of Missouri in upholding the murder conviction of Kevin Johnson. Johnson was convicted in 2007 of murdering Sergeant William “Bill” McEntee on the evening of July 5, 2005. Johnson was sentenced to death for the crime.
The Post reported that Johnson’s younger brother had suffered a seizure earlier that day, and McEntee responded along with other officers. His brother died at the hospital.
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It is the second time the state Supreme Court ruled on an appeal in the case. The court also upheld the conviction and death sentence in 2009.
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