Who is Marcellus Williams? Missouri man executed despite victim’s family’s calls to spare his life

Marcellus Williams, a 55-year-old Missouri man, was executed by lethal injection, despite continuous claims of innocence and calls for clemency from both the victim’s family and the local prosecutor. Williams was convicted for the 1998 murder of Lisha Gayle, a former reporter, who was fatally stabbed in her suburban St. Louis home. However, new DNA evidence raised doubts about his guilt, and concerns were voiced over jury selection and the handling of the trial.

Despite these issues, Missouri Governor Mike Parson, along with the state Supreme Court, rejected Williams’ appeals, with the U.S. Supreme Court also declining to intervene. Williams’ legal team pointed out that the jury in his original trial had only one Black juror, arguing that racial bias played a role. Prosecutor Keith Larner had admitted to dismissing a potential Black juror because he resembled Williams, further fueling concerns of discrimination.

The victim’s family had expressed their desire for clemency, believing life imprisonment without parole would suffice, stating, “Marcellus’ execution is not necessary.” Yet, their calls, along with those from the NAACP and other activists, were ignored. In a final statement, Williams wrote, “All Praise Be to Allah In Every Situation!!!”

New DNA testing had shown that the knife used in the crime contained DNA from members of the prosecutor’s office, who had mishandled the evidence without gloves. Despite these revelations, the state Supreme Court rejected a last-minute agreement to commute the sentence, leading to the execution. The NAACP’s president, Derrick Johnson, described the event as “another lynching of an innocent Black man.”