Controversial Execution: Missouri Man Faces Death Amid Doubts

A Missouri man, Marcellus Williams, is set to face execution despite significant doubts about his guilt. The prosecutor's office originally responsible for his conviction now questions the integrity of the case due to unreliable witnesses and DNA evidence issues. His appeals for clemency have been denied.

A Missouri man is scheduled to be executed on Tuesday unless the U.S. Supreme Court intervenes at the last minute, despite the prosecutor's office that secured his murder conviction 21 years ago raising doubts about the integrity of the case.

Marcellus Williams, 55, awaits execution by lethal injection at 6 p.m. (2300 GMT) at a Bonne Terre prison. Both Missouri Governor Mike Parson and the state's highest court denied his last-ditch bids to avoid execution. Williams was convicted in 2003 for murdering Felicia "Lisha" Gayle, a former newspaper reporter, although he has maintained his innocence.

St. Louis County prosecuting attorney Wesley Bell, whose office handled the original prosecution, has sought to block the execution due to questions about the trial's fairness. "Even for those who disagree on the death penalty, when there is a shadow of a doubt of any defendant's guilt, the irreversible punishment of execution should not be an option," Bell stated.

Court papers revealed Bell's concerns regarding the reliability of trial witnesses and the exclusion of Black jurors. Furthermore, new testing found no trace of Williams' DNA on the murder weapon, instead identifying DNA from a prosecutor and an investigator who mishandled the knife. Despite this, Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey opposed a no-contest plea deal and the state Supreme Court blocked it. A state judge recently upheld Williams' conviction, confirming the lack of evidence on the knife wasn't enough to establish innocence.

Governor Parson rejected Williams' request for clemency. "No jury nor court, including at the trial, appellate, and Supreme Court levels, have ever found merit in Mr. Williams' innocence claims," he said. "His guilty verdict and sentence of capital punishment were upheld." Williams' attorney, Tricia Rojo Bushnell, noted that Gayle's family opposes Williams' execution and declared, "Missouri is poised to execute an innocent man, raising serious doubts about the criminal justice system's legitimacy."

(With inputs from agencies.)