Missouri governor Eric Greitens has issued a stay of execution for Marcellus Williams, a Missouri man sentenced to death for first-degree murder, after DNA evidence showed he may be innocent.
Greitens issued an executive order establishing a Board of Inquiry to examine new evidence in Williams’ case, and issued a stay of execution until the governor can make a final decision on whether to grant him clemency.
Williams was convicted in 2001 of the murder of Felicia Gayle. Gayle, a former St. Louis Post-Dispatch reporter, was stabbed 42 times in her home in 1998.
According to Williams’ lawyers, newly available DNA evidence showed his DNA was not present on the murder weapon, while another individual’s was. The Missouri Supreme Court denied their request for a stay of execution on August 15, citing other evidence, including the testimony of Williams’ cellmate and his former girlfriend.Â
The execution was scheduled to take place at 6 p.m. Tuesday, August 22 in Bonne Terre, Missouri, via lethal injection.
Now, the case will be considered by a board appointed by Greitens, who will weigh both the DNA and other evidence available in the case. It will have closed proceedings and wield subpoena power. The board will then make a recommendation to Greitens on whether Williams’ death sentence should be commuted.
Williams, who is African-American, was convicted by a jury consisting of one black member and 11 white members. The victim, Gayle, was also white.
“We are relieved that Governor Eric Greitens stayed the execution of Marcellus Williams to allow for a board of inquiry to review Mr. Williams’ case in light of new evidence,” Jeffrey Mittman, executive director of the ACLU of Missouri, said in statement.
“We hope that Mr. Williams’ case will show Missouri’s elected officials where our justice system is broken and needs to be fixed: By starting with adequate funding for the Missouri State Public Defender.”
