Marcellus Williams was executed last night in Missouri despite widespread calls for clemency and mounting doubts about his guilt. Williams, a Black man convicted in the 1998 murder of Felicia Gayle, maintained his innocence for 23 years. DNA evidence found on the murder weapon did not match Williams’, yet the courts denied his appeal.
The prosecutor who initially sought the conviction, St. Louis County’s Wesley Bell, later advocated for the case to be overturned. Even the jury said they wanted it overturned, citing racial bias and contaminated evidence. The victim’s family also opposed the execution, but the Missouri Supreme Court and governor pushed forward with it.
Many are questioning how such a grave miscarriage of justice can occur in 2024, with the murderer of Felicia Gayle potentially still on the loose, and issues of racial injustice and wrongful convictions in the death penalty system persisting.
Click play to listen to the report from AURN White House Correspondent Ebony McMorris. For more news, follow @E_N_McMorris & @aurnonline.
