Marcellus Williams, a 55-year-old man whose murder conviction was questioned by a prosecutor, was executed by lethal injection.

Williams was executed shortly after 23:00 GMT on Tuesday at a prison in Bonne Terre, Missouri, despite objections from prosecutors seeking to overturn his conviction and despite the family of the woman he was accused of murdering agreeing to a life sentence for Williams.

This is happening while in five US states, those sentenced to death are to be executed within a week.

Here’s what we know about Williams, the case, and the death penalty in the United States.

Who was Marcellus Williams?

Williams, a black man, was a devout Muslim, an imam for prisoners and a poet, according to his legal team.

He spent 23 years in prison, during which he devoted much of his time to studying Islam and writing poetry, according to The Innocence Project, a nonprofit organization that works with people they believe have been wrongfully convicted.

He also served as imam for Muslim inmates at the Potosi Correctional Center and was known as “Khaliifah,” which means “leader” in Arabic.

Williams’ final statement on Sept. 21 was, “All praise is due to Allah in every situation!” Williams’ public defenders in court said his faith is a big part of his identity and he regrets not finding it earlier in life. He became religious while in prison.

Marcellus Williams was executed.

His final statement was published.

“Praise be to Allah in every situation!!!” pic.twitter.com/hDWg6gNIn3

— Censored Men (@CensoredMen) 24 September 2024

What was Williams accused of?

In 2001, Williams was convicted of murdering Felicia Gayle, a former newspaper reporter and social worker who was found stabbed to death in her home in 1998.

During the trial, prosecutors said that on August 11, 1998, Williams broke into her home, noticed the shower was running, and took a large butcher knife. When Gayle came down the stairs, she was stabbed 43 times and her purse and her husband’s laptop were stolen.

Authorities said Williams was wearing a jacket that day to hide the blood on his shirt. His girlfriend asked why he would wear a jacket on such a hot day and later saw the stolen purse and laptop in his car. Williams sold the laptop a day or two later.

Prosecutors also presented the testimony of Henry Cole, who shared a cell with Williams in 1999 while Williams was in prison for an armed robbery of a doughnut shop. Cole claimed that Williams confessed to the murder and gave specific details.

Tonight an innocent man was executed in Missouri.

Our thoughts are with Marcellus and his family.https://t.co/ebCcFv0vWg pic.twitter.com/aSQxazoK9X

— Innocence Project (@innocence) 24 September 2024

What did Williams’ defense argue?

The lawyers argued that there was no forensic evidence linking Williams to the crime scene and that the murder weapon was improperly handled, casting doubt on the DNA evidence.

Tests showed that the DNA on the knife belonged to employees of the public prosecutor’s office who had handled the knife without gloves after initial examinations in the crime laboratory.

According to an Associated Press report, Williams’ defense also argued that both the girlfriend and Henry Cole were convicted of a crime and asked for a $10,000 reward. They also pointed out that other evidence, such as a bloody shoe print and hair found at the crime scene, did not match Williams’.

According to local media reports, Williams was actually selling a laptop that had been stolen from Gayle’s home. However, local prosecutor Wesley Bell said there was evidence that he had received the computer from his girlfriend. Both witnesses – his girlfriend and Cole – died in the intervening years.

Over the years, Williams was spared execution in 2015 and 2017, but this did not result in his conviction being overturned.

Bell also said that a prosecutor improperly rejected potential black jurors, resulting in a jury of 11 white and one black member.

“Marcellus Williams should be alive today,” Bell said in a statement Tuesday. “There were several points in time when decisions could have been made that would have spared him the death penalty.”

Williams maintained his innocence for decades.

My statement on the execution of Marcellus Williams:

Marcellus Williams should still be alive today. There were several points during the trial where decisions could have been made that would have spared him the death penalty.

If there is even the slightest doubt about innocence, then…

— Wesley Bell for Congress (@bell4mo) 25 September 2024

What other mechanisms were used to defend Williams?

Questions about DNA prompted Bell to request a hearing challenging Williams’ guilt, which was set for August 21.

But a few days before the August 21 hearing, new tests showed that the DNA found on the knife belonged to members of the prosecutor’s office.

Because there was no DNA evidence pointing to other suspects, lawyers and prosecutors reached a compromise: In exchange for a life sentence without parole, Williams would enter a new guilty plea to first-degree murder.

A “November plea” is not an admission of guilt, but is treated as such for sentencing purposes.

Judge Bruce Hilton and Gayle’s family agreed to the agreement, but Republican Attorney General Andrew Bailey appealed, and the state Supreme Court blocked the agreement and ordered Hilton to hold an evidentiary hearing.

Prosecutor Keith Larner said he excluded a potential black juror because of the resemblance between the two: “They looked like they were brothers.”

“Family brothers,” he continued. “I don’t mean black people.”

He also mentioned that the knife had already been tested and that it was not known at the time that contact with it could leave traces of DNA on evidence.

What was decided on September 12?

On Sept. 12, Hilton ruled that the first-degree murder conviction and death sentence would stand because Williams’ arguments had all previously been rejected. The state Supreme Court affirmed that decision on Monday.

Republican Governor Michael Parson rejected Williams’ request for clemency.

“We hope this brings closure to a case that has dragged on for decades and has left Ms. Gayle’s family repeatedly victimized,” Parson said in a statement after the execution. “No juror or judge has ever found Williams’ claim of innocence credible.”

His conviction was based primarily on the testimony of two witnesses who testified against him.

The verdict became final and the authorities initiated the execution.

What were Williams’ final moments?

According to officials, Williams’ last meal consisted of chicken wings and tater tots.

His last visit was to Imam Jalahii Kacem, whom Williams used to follow, from about 16:00 to 17:30 GMT.

At about 22:50 GMT, witnesses – including Williams’ son and two of his lawyers – were escorted to the prison’s viewing area, said Karen Pojmann, spokeswoman for the Missouri Department of Corrections. Representatives of the Gayle family were not present.

At 23:00 GMT, Attorney General Andrew Bailey informed the Prison Service that there were no legal impediments to the execution. The lethal injection was administered at 23:01 GMT.

According to an Associated Press report, Williams wiggled his feet and moved his head slightly under a white sheet pulled up to his neck. After that, his chest rose and fell about six times and he showed no further movement.

According to Pojmann, Williams was pronounced dead at 23:10 GMT.

What is the current situation of the death penalty in the USA?

The Williams case underscores the risks involved in executing an innocent person.

According to the Death Penalty Information Center, at least 200 people have been wrongfully sentenced to death since 1973.

Five states are currently scheduled to execute death row inmates within a week. The first execution took place in South Carolina on Friday, and two inmates, including Williams, were pronounced dead on Tuesday evening.

In South Carolina, Freddie Owens died by lethal injection. It was the first execution in the state in 13 years. Williams was the third inmate executed in Missouri this year and the 100th since the state reinstated the death penalty in 1989.

According to an Associated Press report, if the two remaining executions in Alabama and Oklahoma are carried out this week, it would be the first time in 20 years that five executions have taken place within seven days.

According to the Death Penalty Information Center, there are currently 48 executions scheduled for 2024 in 11 states, and 16 of them have already been carried out.