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The US Supreme Court has denied a stay of execution request for a Missouri inmate scheduled to be put to death on Tuesday evening.
Attorneys for Marcellus Williams, 53, who has been convicted of the 1998 death of Lisha Gayle, a former reporter for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, submitted two requests to stay his execution on Monday. The first was connected to the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals refusing to hear his case on newly discovered evidence of racial bias in jury selection.
Additionally, his attorneys said DNA evidence on the knife used in the attack led back to an unknown male profile and did not match Williams. The court rejected the claim on Saturday.
“There is no basis for a court to find that Williams is innocent, and no court has made such a finding,” St Louis County Circuit Judge Bruce Hilton wrote. “Williams is guilty of first-degree murder, and has been sentenced to death.”
The second request focused on claims from the St Louis County Prosecutor’s Office that Williams might be innocent. Office officials recently filed a motion to vacate his conviction.
A trial judge approved their motion but Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey contested the decision.
The case was then sent back to the same trial judge who reversed his initial ruling. On Monday, both Missouri Governor Mike Parson and the state’s Supreme Court decided against granting clemency to Williams.
The stay of execution requests were submitted to Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, who denied them around 6pm ET on Tuesday.
Justice Sonia Sotomayor, Justice Elena Kagan and Justice Ketanji Onyika Brown Jackson dissented from the second request.
Williams is scheduled to be executed around 6pm CT.
During his murder trial, attorneys for Williams described him as “a caring and loving father.” His family members and friends have said that his execution would have “a significant effect on his family.”
Before leaving office, Missouri Governor Eric Greiten issued a stay of execution for Williams. He appointed a board of inquiry to look into the case and make a recommendation for clemency. Governor Parson dissolved the board and lifted the stay in 2023 after his election.
Williams is one of five men scheduled to be put to death over six days. Travis Mullis, a Texas death row inmate, is scheduled to be executed for killing his infant son around the same time.
