Missouri prosecutor seeks to overturn the conviction of an inmate who has spent decades on death row

By JIM SALTER
Associated Press

ST. LOUIS (AP) — A Missouri prosecutor now believes that inmate Marcellus Williams is innocent of the crime that landed him on death row and very nearly cost him his life, and is seeking to overturn his conviction. St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Wesley Bell filed a court motion Friday seeking to vacate the conviction of Williams, who narrowly escaped execution seven years ago for the stabbing death of Lisha Gayle in 1998. Missouri law allows prosecutors to file for a hearing before a judge if they believe an inmate could be innocent or was otherwise erroneously convicted. Since that law was passed in 2021, it has led to the freeing of two other men.