Here’s Why Missouri’s AG Keeps Blocking Innocent People From Freedom

For many years, DNA evidence has pointed to the possibility that Marcellus “Khaliifah” Williams was incorrectly convicted of killing Felicia Gayle. However, the weeks leading up to his execution date on September 24 have been filled with unexpected developments.

In 2017, the proof available satisfied Gayle's family and Missouri's then-attorney general. However, this past January, the office of St. Louis Prosecuting Attorney Wesley Bell reconsidered the 2000 murder conviction and formally requested to halt the execution.

Williams, a 54-year-old grandfather who is known as Khaliifah, has consistently claimed he is innocent since 1998.

However, Attorney General Andrew Bailey has apparently been steadfast in his efforts to carry out Williams' execution. Over the weekend, legal briefs were submitted to the Missouri Supreme Court challenging a circuit judge's refusal to overturn Williams' murder conviction from 1998. On Monday, Williams' legal team contended that the prosecutor's recent acknowledgment of excluding Black jurors should warrant the reversal of the conviction. The attorney general's office has rejected these assertions.

Just hours after the hearing on Monday, the judges unanimously ruled to maintain Williams' conviction, permitting his execution to proceed even though an appeal is still in progress at the U.S. Supreme Court. Furthermore, a request for clemency submitted to the governor was turned down before the day concluded.

Supporters of the cause argue that the situation highlights the state of justice in the Midwest. They point out that the government’s approach to imprisoning, criminalizing, monitoring, prosecuting, and applying the death penalty disproportionately affects Black individuals and those living in poverty — much like in the South, as stated by Michelle Smith, co-founder of the nonprofit organization Missourians to Abolish the Death Penalty.

“We come from a background that often sees Black, poor, and brown individuals as less than human,” Smith explained. “Missouri, in particular, has a system—spanning government and the courts—that is heavily focused on punishment and vengeance instead of genuine justice,” she added.

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According to the National Registry of Exonerations, which has recorded wrongful convictions since 1989, over 50% of the 55 wrongful conviction cases in Missouri involved Black individuals who were later exonerated. This group includes three people who received death sentences. In the last decade, the number of death penalty cases in Missouri has significantly decreased, with only one instance where a jury unanimously decided to impose a death sentence, as reported by Missourians to Abolish the Death Penalty.

Since last year, Bailey has actively worked to prevent exonerees from being released from prison. In certain instances, he has even pushed for their execution, despite overwhelming evidence proving their innocence.

However, supporters like Smith, who connected with Williams three years ago through her advocacy efforts, believe that Williams has become familiar with this situation.

This isn't the first occasion that the Missouri Supreme Court has established a date for Williams' execution.

"He has experienced this situation multiple times—three to be exact," Smith commented, mentioning the initial delay of the execution that was approved in August 2017 by former Governor Eric Greitens.

DNA evidence and testimonies from informants in prison are key elements that highlight cases of wrongful convictions. According to the National Registry of Exonerations database, 848 individuals across the country have been wrongfully convicted partly due to information provided by jailhouse informants and DNA testing done after their trials. Over 50% of these individuals are Black.

"Why is it so hard for them to allow this man to show that he's innocent? I just can’t understand it," Sabrina Smith, a former death row inmate from Mississippi who is not related to Michelle Smith, stated during an interview with Capital B.

"They realize they have no evidence, yet they're still ready to take someone's life. Honestly, that really frustrates me. It's upsetting to think that the United States is so quick to execute its own people, and that just doesn’t add up."

Can An Innocent Man Be Executed?

Williams was found guilty based on the statements of two individuals: a jailhouse informant and a former girlfriend. Both witnesses had their own separate legal issues at the time, which meant that providing testimony for the prosecution could help them in some way, like receiving monetary rewards.

During a hearing on August 28 regarding Williams' case, the prosecutor in charge of the trial disclosed that he had improperly handled the murder weapon, which resulted in his DNA being left on it. He also acknowledged that he excluded Black individuals from the jury based on unfounded assumptions, such as believing that Williams was connected to a prospective juror simply because they appeared to resemble each other.

On September 12, Judge Bruce F. Hilton of the St. Louis County Circuit Court decided not to reverse Williams' conviction for fatally stabbing Gayle back in 1998.

Madeline Sieren, a representative for Bailey's office, stated that they continue to support the conviction in light of Hilton's decision.

"Marcellus Williams has not been declared innocent. Just last week, a judge issued a ruling that upheld his conviction," Sieren stated in an email to Capital B.

In a unanimous decision, Judge Zel M. Fischer of the Missouri Supreme Court sided with Hilton. He stated, “There is no reliable proof of actual innocence nor any indication of a constitutional mistake that would call the original ruling into question.”

Hilton's decision largely overlooked DNA evidence from 2016, which showed that Williams did not contribute to the DNA found on the murder weapon or the bloodstains discovered inside Gayle's home in St. Louis.

In 2017, Williams' execution was temporarily halted because a committee set up by Greitens was assigned to re-examine his case due to newly found DNA evidence. Then, in 2021, Missouri passed a new law allowing elected prosecutors to look into previous convictions when there are claims of misconduct.

Before this change, a legal ruling from 2016 established a rule in Missouri that permitted only those on death row to be exonerated, which meant that people like Christopher Dunn, who was given a life sentence without the chance for parole, had to stay in prison despite being innocent. After spending 34 years behind bars, Dunn was finally freed in July.

In June 2023, Republican Governor Mike Parson disbanded the advisory board before they had the chance to present their findings or suggest to him that Williams should be granted clemency.

Bailey, a Republican who was appointed by Parson in 2023 and is now campaigning for a full term, has established a second date for an execution.

"It's all about politics," said Sabrina Smith, a former exoneree and a communications assistant for Witness to Innocence.

Earlier this year, Bell's office collaborated with the Midwest Innocence Project, which is advocating for Williams, to submit a request to overturn his conviction that dates back 24 years. Prominent civil rights groups, including the NAACP, have started an online petition urging Parson to take action.

“Mr. Williams' conviction has raised several significant and thoroughly documented issues,” Bell stated on September 12 following Hilton's ruling. “The Gayle family has expressed that, although they want this case to be resolved, they are opposed to imposing the death penalty on Mr. Williams.”

"I share their views and, like others who believe that the evidence in this case doesn't justify a death penalty, I will keep striving to stop that from happening."

The execution is scheduled for Tuesday at 6 p.m. in the local timezone.

"I'm feeling anxious, but Khaliifah isn't," Michelle Smith expressed.

While serving his sentence, Williams has taken on the role of an imam and has become a mentor to fellow inmates.

"He gives me a call every now and then to see how I'm doing," Michelle Smith laughed while speaking about the native of Ferguson. "That's just the kind of person he is."

Before Williams was imprisoned, he was raising his son, Marcellus Williams Jr., who was just a young boy in elementary school when his father was taken away. Despite the difficulties of being a dad while incarcerated, Williams has worked hard to be there for his son in every way he can. Although Marcellus Jr. had to grow up without his father's physical presence, the faith they share has helped maintain their close connection, enabling Marcellus Jr. to carry on their family name with his own son.

"Michelle Smith spoke about the challenges Williams has encountered on death row, alongside 11 others, noting, 'He is a deeply faithful individual — a committed Muslim. His faith has certainly helped him endure all of this over the years.'"