COLE COUNTY, Mo. — A man on death row for the killing of a former Post-Dispatch reporter says state officials are violating his rights by moving to set a new execution date before fully investigating his claims of innocence, according to a lawsuit filed Thursday.
Marcellus Williams, who has been on death row since 2001 for the fatal stabbing of Felicia Gayle, filed a lawsuit Thursday accusing Missouri Gov. Mike Parson of improperly dissolving a board tasked with investigating exonerating evidence and Attorney General Andrew Bailey of violating Williams’ due process rights by trying to set a new execution date.
“There is clear and convincing evidence that Marcellus Williams did not murder Ms. Gayle,†said Charles Weiss, a lawyer representing Williams, in a news release. “It would be a terrible tragedy for the state to execute Mr. Williams before the board of inquiry completed its commission.â€
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Gayle, 42, was killed at her home in University City in 1998. Prosecutors argued Williams was burglarizing her home when she surprised him. She fought for her life but was ultimately stabbed 48 times. Her purse and her laptop were stolen from the home.
Prosecutors said Williams also stole a jacket, which he used to conceal blood on his shirt. Williams’ girlfriend testified at trial that she saw him that day and asked him why he’d wear a coat when it was so hot outside. She also said she saw Gayle’s laptop in a car and that Williams sold it.
Another witness called to testify at trial, Henry Cole, shared a cell with Williams in ºüÀêÊÓƵ while Williams was jailed on unrelated charges. Cole told prosecutors that Williams confessed to the killing and offered details about it.
But Williams’ attorneys have long argued that the girlfriend and Cole were both convicted felons who were seeking a $10,000 reward.
DNA evidence from the scene examined in 2016 also exonerates Williams, attorneys say. A partial DNA sample found on the handle of the murder weapon came back for an “unknown male,†and hair found at the scene also did not match Williams’ profile.
In 2017, Williams was hours from being executed when then-Gov. Eric Greitens issued a stay and invoked a state law to appoint a five-member panel of former judges to review whether Williams should be granted clemency in light of the new evidence.
But six years later, the panel still hadn’t made a final recommendation, according to the suit. Parson dissolved the inquiry, and Bailey said he would move forward with an execution date.
Bailey said in a statement on Friday that it was part of his office’s mission to “unabashedly pursue justice for victims.â€
“In this case, that looks like carrying out the lawful sentence and judgment handed down by the court,†Bailey said.
But Williams’ attorneys say it would be a constitutional violation to execute him without fully reviewing all of the evidence.
“To date, no judge has ruled on the full evidence of Mr. Williams’ innocence,†said Tricia Rojo Bushnell, the executive director of the Midwest Innocence Project, in a news release. “Knowing that, the state of Missouri still seeks to execute him. That is not justice.â€