A man sentenced to death is due to appear in court in August to present DNA evidence.
On Tuesday, Marcellus “Khaliifah” Williams, 55, was granted an evidentiary hearing set for August 21, just weeks before his scheduled execution on September 24.
The hearing was requested after St. Louis County District Attorney Wesley Bell in January invoked a Missouri law that allows prosecutors to file a motion to vacate a conviction.
A judge is expected to rule on Williams’ innocence after the hearing, but it is unclear how long it will take for that decision to be made.
“The court will now do its part to review this never-before-considered exonerating evidence,” said Tricia Bushnell, an attorney with the Midwest Innocence Project. “This is the process the Missouri Legislature created to ensure the state does not execute an innocent person like Mr. Williams. The attorney general should not attempt to block the court’s review, and the Missouri Supreme Court should stay Mr. Williams’ execution.”
Williams was convicted of the 1998 murder of Felicia Gayle.
Williams was sentenced to death twice, but both times the execution was stayed to allow for DNA testing and further investigation.
In 2017, former Governor Eric Greitens issued a second extension and appointed a commission of inquiry to investigate the matter.
Governor Mike Parson lifted the ban and dissolved the board in June 2023.
The Missouri Supreme Court issued the execution warrant last month.
Williams’ attorneys argue that he cannot be linked to evidence from the crime scene, including DNA on the murder weapon, shoe prints, fingerprints or hair.
They also said two witnesses who testified against Williams were motivated by a prize of money and promises of leniency in their own separate criminal cases.
The Missouri attorney general’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the hearing.
In a motion to dismiss Bell’s case, the office argued that Williams was guilty, his appeals have already been denied, and that the Circuit Court of St. Louis County does not have the authority to stay an execution.
