On September 24, 2024, at exactly 6:10 p.m., the State of Missouri executed Marcellus Williams. It happened at the Eastern Reception, Diagnostic and Correctional Center in Bonne Terre. Outside the prison gates, people were praying. Some were screaming. Inside, Williams was quiet. He had spent 24 years on death row for the 1998 murder of Felicia Gayle, a crime he insisted he didn't commit until his very last breath.
People always want to know what someone says when they know the end is minutes away. Honestly, with Williams, it wasn't a long speech. It wasn't a confession. Marcellus Williams last words were handwritten on a piece of paper provided by the Department of Corrections. He wrote: "All Praise Be To Allah In Every Situation!!!"
That was it. Nine words. Three exclamation points.
The Meaning Behind the Final Statement
For Williams, who went by the name Khaliifah, those words weren't just a religious trope. He had become a devout Muslim and served as an imam for other incarcerated men. He spent his years in the "afternoon" of his life—as he might have called it—studying, praying, and writing poetry. To his supporters, that final statement was a testament to his peace. To the state, it was simply the final administrative requirement before the lethal injection began.
It's kinda wild when you look at the timeline. He had been through this twice before. In 2015 and 2017, he was literally hours away from dying when stays were granted. He’d already eaten "final" meals. He’d already said goodbyes. By the time 2024 rolled around, there was a sense of exhausted resilience in his demeanor.
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What He Didn't Say
Notice what’s missing? There was no mention of the victim, Felicia Gayle. There was no mention of the legal team that fought for him until the U.S. Supreme Court declined to step in just an hour before the execution. He didn't use the moment to rail against the Missouri Attorney General, Andrew Bailey, who pushed aggressively for the execution to proceed.
He just focused on his faith.
Why Marcellus Williams Last Words Still Haunt the Justice System
The reason this case became a global flashpoint isn't just because of those nine words. It’s because the prosecutor’s office that originally convicted him—the St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office—actually fought to stop the execution. They didn't think he was guilty. Or, at the very least, they didn't think the conviction could be trusted.
Basically, the case against him was built on the testimony of two people: a jailhouse informant and an ex-girlfriend. Both of them wanted reward money. Both had their own legal troubles. There was no DNA. No fingerprints. In fact, when the murder weapon (a kitchen knife) was finally tested for DNA years later, it didn't match Williams. It matched the original prosecutor and an investigator who had handled it without gloves.
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Imagine that. The "evidence" was contaminated by the very people trying to solve the crime.
A Final Act of Poetry
If you want to understand the man behind Marcellus Williams last words, you have to look at his writing. He wasn't just a name on a docket; he was a poet. One of his last shared poems, titled "At last…Another’s heartbeat," described a moment of deep human connection and the "peace of silence."
"i remember the life i’ve been given and that death will come to each," he wrote in one piece shared by the Midwest Innocence Project.
He seemed to have accepted his fate long before the IV was even prepped. His legal team, including Tricia Rojo Bushnell, described him as a "kind and thoughtful man" who spent his final days supporting those around him. Even the victim’s family, the Gayles, didn't want him executed. They preferred a sentence of life without parole.
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Missouri did it anyway.
The Legal Battle That Failed
The final 48 hours were a chaotic blur of motions and denials. Here is a quick breakdown of how we got to that final statement:
- The Plea Deal: Williams agreed to an "Alford plea" (maintaining innocence while admitting the state has enough to convict) to get life in prison. A judge signed it. The victim's family agreed. The Attorney General blocked it.
- The Governor's Stance: Governor Mike Parson dissolved a board of inquiry that had been looking into the case for years. He said it was time for "finality."
- The SCOTUS Denials: Three liberal justices—Sotomayor, Kagan, and Jackson—said they would have granted a stay. They were outvoted.
What Happens Now?
The execution of Marcellus Williams has re-ignited a massive debate about the "finality" of the death penalty versus the search for truth. If a prosecutor, a jury member, and the victim's family all say "don't do this," and the state does it anyway, what does that say about the system?
You can’t undo an execution. Those nine words—"All Praise Be To Allah In Every Situation!!!"—are now a permanent part of Missouri’s history.
To stay informed or get involved in similar cases of contested convictions, you can look into the work of the Midwest Innocence Project or the Innocence Project. They keep active databases on cases where DNA or witness recantations suggest a wrongful conviction. You can also track state-level legislation regarding "prosecutorial discretion" laws, which are the very laws Wesley Bell tried to use to save Williams. Following the specific dockets of the Missouri Supreme Court will also give you a window into how "finality" is being prioritized in future capital cases.
Next Steps for Research:
Check the official records on the Death Penalty Information Center website for a list of other inmates currently on death row who have been supported by the prosecutors who originally convicted them. It's a rare but growing trend in the American legal landscape.