In a recent development, a man from Missouri who was scheduled for execution in September has reached an agreement with prosecutors. As part of the deal, he has decided to plead no contest to the murder charges. This unexpected turn of events has brought a new twist to the case.
In a significant development, an agreement was reached on Wednesday in St. Louis County Circuit Court concerning Marcellus “Khaliifah” Williams’ case. The agreement entails modifying his sentence from death to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. This decision was made in light of the introduction of new DNA evidence.
However, the deal is being opposed by the Missouri Attorney General’s Office, which is making efforts to prevent it from progressing.
Williams’ execution warrant, scheduled for September 24, has not been revoked. There is still a possibility for intervention from the Missouri Supreme Court, the U.S. Supreme Court, or the governor.
Instead of holding an evidentiary hearing at 8:30 a.m. on Wednesday to establish Williams’ innocence in court, attorneys decided to convene a closed-door meeting.
Around 11:20 a.m., St. Louis County Circuit Judge Bruce Hilton announced that a consent judgment had been reached. The court session was scheduled to convene at 1 p.m.
According to him, the attorneys have been diligently addressing the challenging and emotionally charged matter.
Around 1:45 p.m., Williams, 55, entered the courtroom under the watchful eyes of the attendees.
According to Matthew Jacober, an attorney for the prosecutor’s office, the evidence in Williams’ case was not handled correctly.
The DNA analysis of the murder weapon consistently revealed that Williams was not a match. However, recent findings indicate that two investigators were likely to have contributed to the DNA evidence found on the knife, suggesting contamination of the evidence. Jacober stated that it is plausible that DNA had been tampered with, possibly removed and added.
Jacober stated that the plea deal had been extensively discussed with the victim’s family and that it would provide the necessary closure.
Andrew Clarke from the Attorney General’s Office raised objections, stating that the court lacked the authority to accept the consent judgment or resentence Williams.
After meticulously examining almost 8,000 pages of documents, Judge Hilton expressed his comprehensive understanding of the case.
Williams was asked if he had signed the consent judgment.
“I did,” Williams replied.
Hilton has accepted the consent judgment and acknowledged the desire of the victim’s family to bring closure to the case without imposing the death penalty.
The resentencing hearing is set to take place at 8:30 a.m. on Thursday.
The Missouri Supreme Court received a writ and an emergency stay from the attorney general’s office, seeking to halt proceedings later in the day.
In January, prosecutors from St. Louis County made a motion to overturn Williams’ conviction. They stated that there was no physical evidence linking him to the murder of Felicia Gayle in 1998.
In 2021, a distinctive Missouri law came into effect, granting prosecutors the authority to step in if they possess information suggesting the potential innocence or wrongful conviction of a prisoner.
Under the leadership of Andrew Bailey, the Missouri Attorney General’s Office has consistently shown hostility towards innocence claims and has actively opposed the case.
‘Blood hungry’
This Article Includes
Supporters of Williams showed up for the court proceedings, with a significant number of them gathering at a nearby park during the lunch hour.
Joe Amrine, who was exonerated from Missouri’s death row in 2003, was among them.
Missouri has always had a thirst for blood.
Former Attorney General Jay Nixon’s office contended that, regardless of his innocence, Amrine should still face execution.
Amrine expressed his opposition to the death penalty, citing its irreversibility as the main reason.
“I’ve been out for 20 years, and while we have made some progress, there is still a long way to go,” he expressed. “In my opinion, any form of execution is both cruel and unusual punishment.”
“I still believe my father is innocent,” he said.
“I have to be completely honest, today I wouldn’t have been inclined to make this decision,” he admitted. “Because what I truly want is a complete exoneration.”
“It’s far from over.”
According to Tricia Rojo Bushnell, an attorney with the Midwest Innocence Project, Williams is not connected to the murder based on the evidence.
In a statement, she emphasized that Marcellus Williams is an innocent man, and this plea agreement does not alter that fact. By accepting an Alford plea, the parties involved aim to provide some closure for Felicia Gayle’s family, while also allowing Mr. Williams to stay alive as they persist in their efforts to gather new evidence and establish his innocence beyond any doubt.
Long legal fight
Williams faced conviction in August 2001, and despite a series of appeals that began in 2003, they were all rejected.
In the past, he has been on the verge of execution twice, once in January 2015 and again in August 2017. However, both times, the execution was postponed in order to carry out DNA testing and conduct further investigations.
Former Governor Eric Greitens appointed a board of inquiry to investigate the case after issuing the second stay.
In June 2023, Governor Mike Parson lifted the stay and dissolved the board without providing much explanation. It remains uncertain whether the board had made a recommendation in Williams’ case or not.
The execution warrant was issued by the Missouri Supreme Court in June, despite the case filed by St. Louis County prosecutors on behalf of Williams in January.
In late July, the motion by the Missouri Attorney General’s Office to stop Wednesday’s evidentiary hearing was rejected by the Missouri Supreme Court.
Editor’s note: We have made changes to this story to accurately reflect the Missouri Attorney General’s Office’s opposition to the consent judgment.