Marcellus Williams was executed by the state of Missouri on Tuesday, September 24, despite concerns about his possible innocence. Williams died shortly after 6:00 p.m. by lethal injection at the Missouri State Prison in Bonne Terre, St. Francois County. He was 55 years old.

After his death there was widespread outrage, especially because the execution was not supported by the Public Prosecution Service or the victim’s family.

Williams was convicted and sentenced to death in 2001 for the 1998 murder of Felicia Gayle, a social worker and well-known reporter for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, who was killed in her home.

The St. Louis County District Attorney’s Office urged officials and courts to halt the execution, citing concerns about the trial’s jury selection (the vast majority of the jury was white) and possible racial bias: Williams was black, while Gayle was white. In addition, DNA evidence failed to link Williams to the murder.

“Even for those who disagree with the death penalty, when there is even a shadow of doubt about a defendant’s guilt, the irreversible punishment of execution should not be an option,” St. Louis County District Attorney Wesley Bell said in a statement, according to the New York Times. Times.

Missouri Governor Mike Parson and the Missouri Supreme Court have rejected multiple attempts to prevent the execution, including clemency petitions from Williams’ attorneys, the victim’s family and the state attorney general, as well as letters from the NAACP and the Council on American-Islamic Relations.

On September 24, the U.S. Supreme Court denied a stay of execution.

After Williams’ execution, there was widespread public outrage over doubts about his conviction, especially after new developments emerged in August indicating that the knife used in the murder was contaminated with DNA from a prosecutor and investigator working on the case.

Williams’ poetry and writings have been shared virally on social media. One document, confirmed by publications including Newsweek, shows Williams’ handwritten “final statement” before his death, which reads: “All Praise Be to Allah in Every Situation!!!”

Many have also shared his poems, which have appeared in several online magazines and the Kansas City Journal. Star.

In the run-up to and after Williams’ death, many advocates have pointed out that his story was not an isolated moment, but rather indicative of a broader story about racial injustice in the criminal justice system.

Several criminal justice advocates and politicians are also calling for the abolition of the death penalty, including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Rep. Cori Bush of Missouri and Derrick Johnson, CEO of the NAACP.

“The state of Missouri and our nation’s justice system failed Marcellus Williams, and as long as we retain the death penalty, we will continue to perpetuate this depravity,” Bush said in a statement Tuesday night following Williams’ execution.