Missouri Executed Man For The Murder Of A Woman After DNA Testing Showed Evidence Of Contamination

Posted • September 25, 2024: Missouri Executed This Man For The Brutal Murder Of A Woman During A Home Invasion Even Though He Claimed He Was Innocent 一 Missouri executed Marcellus Williams, who maintained his innocence until he died after the Supreme Court rejected a bid to stop the execution. Williams passed by lethal injection. The Innocence Project claims Williams was wrongfully convicted, stating that Missouri "corrupted the evidence that could conclusively prove his innocence and the available DNA and other forensic crime-scene evidence does not match him." Williams was previously convicted in the 1998 stabbing death of Felicia Gayle.

St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Wesley Bell actually joined Williams’ attorneys by asking for the conviction to be overturned. The request came after new testimony and recent DNA testing showed evidence of potential contamination. The Missouri Attorney General’s Office however says the DNA findings don’t exonerate Williams. "In this case, a new round of DNA testing proved the office was right all along; the knife in question has been handled by many actors, including law enforcement since being found," said Attorney General Andrew Bailey.