A Missouri man has been executed for breaking into a woman’s home and murdering her, despite pleas from her family and the prosecutor’s office for his life to be spared in favor of a life sentence.
Marcellus Williams, 55, was convicted in 1998 for fatally stabbing Lisha Gayle, who was 42 at the time, during a burglary in her suburban St. Louis home.
During the trial, prosecutors detailed how Williams broke in on August 11, 1998, heard the shower running, and armed himself with a large butcher knife. Gayle was stabbed 43 times when she came downstairs, and her purse along with her husband’s laptop was taken.
Authorities reported that Williams wore a jacket to hide blood on his shirt. His girlfriend questioned his choice of clothing on a hot day and later noticed the stolen items in his car. Williams sold the laptop a day or two later.
Maintaining his innocence, Williams sought to have his death sentence commuted to life imprisonment. However, he faced setbacks on Monday when Republican Governor Mike Parson denied his clemency request and the Missouri Supreme Court refused to grant a stay of execution. The U.S. Supreme Court also declined to intervene.
His clemency petition emphasized that Gayle’s family preferred Williams’ sentence be commuted to life without parole. The petition stated, “The family defines closure as Marcellus being allowed to live. Marcellus’ execution is not necessary.”
Williams’ son and two attorneys observed from another room, while no representatives from the victim’s family were present.
The Department of Corrections released a statement from Williams, who said, “All Praise Be to Allah In Every Situation!!!”
Governor Parson expressed hope that the execution would bring closure to a case that had “languished for decades, revictimizing Ms. Gayle’s family repeatedly.” He noted that “no juror nor judge has ever found Williams’ innocence claim to be credible.”
The NAACP had urged Parson to halt the execution. NAACP President Derrick Johnson stated, “Tonight, Missouri lynched another innocent Black man.”
This marked the third time Williams faced execution; previous attempts in 2015 and 2017 had been postponed, but his final efforts proved unsuccessful.