Ronald Johnson v. State of Missouri

Summary

The Court affirmed the denial of postconviction relief, holding that Johnson failed to prove his guilty plea was coerced or that counsel was ineffective. Because Johnson had not been adjudicated intellectually disabled before accepting the plea, counsel accurately advised that he remained eligible for the death penalty, and the record supported the findings that he was competent and that counsel reasonably relied on the competency evaluation. The Court also held that counsel was not ineffective for failing to obtain a second competency evaluation.