The barbaric practice of execution is in the news as the Missouri Supreme Court and the state’s Governor Mike Parson each refused clemency requests on Monday from 55-year-old Marcellus Williams. Williams is set to be executed by lethal injection Tuesday at 6 p.m. in connection with the murder of Lisha Gayle, a social worker and former newspaper reporter who was stabbed more than 40 times during a burglary at her home in St. Louis in 1998, according to The Associated Press. Williams has maintained his innocence.
True story. When I worked for the Chair of the California Legislative Black Caucus Mervyn Dymally in the early 2000s, our office took the lead on advocating for clemency on behalf of Stanley Tookie Williams (no relation to Marcellus Williams that I know of) with then-Governor Arnold Schwarzneggar. Williams was a California death row inmate at San Quentin Prison credited with being a co-founder of the Crips gang who was convicted of murdering four people in South Los Angeles in 1979. He maintained his innocence up until his execution by lethal injection on December 13, 2005. Supporters said he was a changed man who worked from behind bars to end gang violence. At the time of his execution, Williams was a noted activist and author, who had been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize five times and the Nobel Prize in literature four times. He is the only man in history to be nominated while imprisoned.
Long before I ever knew who Williams was or what he had been convicted of, I was against the death penalty. It was anything that I can remember ever discussing with members of my family or anyone for that matter–it was just a feeling that I had immediately once I learned of the practice of killing as a means of justice.
I spent a lot of time working on the Williams case. I developed a friendship with Williams over the months of working on his behalf that included at one point speaking to him every single day via phone up until he was executed. In fact, I did one of his last interviews–if not his last interview– before his execution. It’s still hard for me to listen to to this day. I can still remember the deep depression I sank into after he was executed. I was young and wasn’t prepared for that in the way the people who work with death row inmates on a regular basis might be.
Through the years my perspective has changed on many things, but on the death penalty–it has not.
I have always stood with survivors of crime and victims because I know that justice is important. People should be held accountable for the harm they cause, and I truly believe in punishment where it’s due.
But here’s the thing—I do not believe the death penalty is the answer.
For me, it’s not about being soft on crime, it’s about being smart and compassionate. The death penalty is often framed as a way to bring closure or justice to victims’ families, but studies have shown that it doesn’t really do that. What it does is perpetuate a cycle of violence and puts us in the position of playing God. Add to that, our justice system is far from perfect. Too many innocent people have been wrongfully convicted, and we can’t be okay with even the slightest chance of executing an innocent person.
I cannot ignore the glaring racial disparities in death penalty cases. People of Color, especially Black people, are disproportionately sentenced to death compared to their white counterparts. It’s not just about the crime, it’s about who gets punished and how. I can’t support a system that’s so deeply flawed and unfair.
There’s also the issue of costs. It’s more expensive to execute someone than to keep them in prison for life. And those resources could be better spent supporting victims, funding mental health services, and addressing the root causes of crime. Imagine a system where we actually invested in preventing harm before it happens instead of trying to solve problems after the fact in such an irreversible way.
We should be focusing on restorative justice, on healing for survivors, and on making our communities safer for everyone. That doesn’t mean letting people off easy or ignoring the pain caused by violent crime. It means recognizing that justice isn’t about revenge—it’s about making things right. And the death penalty isn’t right–it isn’t right and it clearly isn’t a deterrent for violent crimes either.
Advocates for the death penalty always present the same argument to opponents that our opinion would change if it were someone we loved who was killed. I don’t know that my position would change but I do know that I hope I never have to find out that way.
