A Missouri man convicted of breaking into a woman’s home and repeatedly stabbing her was executed Tuesday despite objections from the victim’s family and the prosecutor, who had sought to have his death sentence commuted to life in prison. Marcellus Williams, 55, was sentenced to death for the 1998 killing of Lisha Gayle, who was attacked during a burglary at her suburban St. Louis home.
Williams’ execution went forward amid ongoing questions raised by his attorneys regarding jury selection at his trial and the handling of evidence. His clemency petition concentrated heavily on the wishes of Gayle’s family, who had advocated for his sentence to be reduced to life without parole. “The family defines closure as Marcellus being allowed to live,” the petition stated. “Marcellus’ execution is not necessary.”
As he awaited execution, Williams conversed with a spiritual advisor at his side. He wiggled his feet under a white sheet and moved his head slightly while speaking with his advisor. Moments later, his chest heaved several times before he ceased movement altogether. Observing the execution from another room were Williams’ son and two attorneys; no one from the victim’s family was present.
The Department of Corrections released a brief statement from Williams, penned in advance of his execution: “All Praise Be to Allah In Every Situation!!!” Republican Missouri Gov. Mike Parson expressed hope that the execution would bring an end to a case that had “languished for decades, revictimizing Ms. Gayle’s family over and over again,” emphasizing that “No juror nor judge has ever found Williams’ innocence claim to be credible.”
The NAACP, among other advocates, had urged Parson to halt the execution. “Tonight, Missouri lynched another innocent Black man,” stated NAACP President Derrick Johnson.
Williams had previously faced execution twice, with reprieves granted in 2015 and 2017. However, his final appeals were swiftly denied by Gov. Parson and the state Supreme Court on Monday, and the U.S. Supreme Court refused to intervene merely hours before he was put to death.
Last month, Gayle’s family had endorsed an agreement between the St. Louis County prosecuting attorney’s office and Williams’ attorneys to commute his sentence to life in prison. However, the state Supreme Court nullified this agreement after an appeal from Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey’s office.
Williams was among death row inmates in five states scheduled for execution in a span of a week, marking a deviation from a yearslong decline in the use and support of the death penalty in the U.S. The first of these executions was carried out in South Carolina, with Texas also scheduled to execute a prisoner on the same Tuesday evening.
Lisha Gayle, 42, was a social worker and a former reporter for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Prosecutors at Williams’ trial contended that he broke into her home on August 11, 1998, discovered a large butcher knife, and fatally stabbed Gayle 43 times when she came downstairs. Williams allegedly stole a purse and her husband’s laptop, later selling the computer.
Authorities noted that Williams concealed blood on his shirt with a jacket, which his girlfriend questioned due to the hot weather. She reportedly saw the stolen items in his car and testified that he confessed to the murder while they shared a cell in 1999.
Williams’ attorneys countered that both the girlfriend and another inmate had criminal records and motives to claim the $10,000 reward. They argued that fingerprints, a bloody shoeprint, hair, and other evidence at the crime scene did not match Williams. Additionally, DNA evidence led Prosecuting Attorney Wesley Bell to question Williams’ guilt, as recent testing revealed DNA on the knife belonged to members of the prosecutor’s office who handled it without gloves.
Despite these doubts and a new agreement for a no-contest plea to first-degree murder in exchange for life without parole, the state Supreme Court blocked the deal and ordered further hearings. Judge Bruce Hilton upheld the original conviction and death sentence, a decision sustained by the state Supreme Court on Monday.
Williams’ attorneys also challenged the racial fairness of his trial, noting only one Black juror among twelve. Prosecutor Keith Larner’s justification for striking a Black juror for resembling Williams was deemed racially biased by the defense, though Larner maintained the selection was fair.
Williams’ execution marks the third in Missouri this year and the 100th since the state resumed capital punishment in 1989.
