Executions in Missouri and Texas – in one case against the will of the prosecution

Death sentences were carried out almost simultaneously in two US states on Tuesday – in Missouri and Texas.

Texas

On Tuesday evening, 38-year-old Travis Mullis was executed by lethal injection in Huntsville in the US state of Texas. He was sentenced to death for the gruesome killing of his three-month-old son in 2008.

Mullis waived his right to further appeal. His lawyer explained that Texas would execute a “reformed man” who had taken responsibility for committing a “terrible crime”.

“I want to thank everyone who has accepted me as the person I have become in my best and worst moments,” Mullis said as he was strapped to the gurney in the execution room. “I regret the decision to take my son’s life.” He apologized to his son’s mother and her family and said he harbored no ill will toward anyone involved in the punishment. “It was my decision that brought me here,” he said.

The execution was delayed for about 20 minutes while technicians worked to find a suitable vein. A needle containing the lethal dose of the sedative pentobarbital was inserted into his right arm, as is customary. A second needle was not inserted into his left arm, but into his left foot.

Mullis suffered from a mental illness and had been sexually abused as a child. The US Supreme Court has banned the use of the death penalty for the mentally disabled, but not for people with severe mental illness.

Missouri

Also on Tuesday evening, 55-year-old Marcellus Williams was executed by lethal injection in the US state of Missouri. He was sentenced to death for allegedly stabbing a social worker to death during a burglary in 1998.

However, there was no forensic evidence linking Williams to the murder weapon or the crime scene. Accordingly, there were major doubts about his guilt and both the public prosecutor’s office, the victim’s family and some of the jurors have since spoken out against the execution.

in 2017, the then Republican governor Eric Greitens halted Williams’ execution and appointed a committee to investigate the case. The current Republican governor Mike Parson dissolved the committee and pushed for the sentence to be carried out.

In January, Wesley Bell, the Democratic prosecutor in St. Louis who advocates for criminal justice reform, filed a motion to overturn Williams’ conviction. Bell cited repeated DNA tests which showed that Williams’ fingerprints were not on the knife.

In August, Williams and the prosecution agreed to stay his execution: He would not contest the first-degree murder conviction in exchange for a new life sentence without parole. His lawyers said the agreement was not an admission of guilt and was intended to save his life while he sought new evidence of his innocence. A judge agreed to the deal, as did the victim’s family, but the state attorney general challenged it and the state Supreme Court blocked it.

Williams’ public defenders said the governor had “completely ignored” the victim’s family, adding in a statement that their client had been an inspiration as a devout Muslim. “We are seeking his measure of faith, his integrity and his complete dedication to the people in his life.” Williams served as an imam in prison and devoted his time to poetry.

Sources:
https://www.krqe.com/news/national/ap-a-texas-man-is-set-to-be-executed-for-killing-his-infant-son-in-2008/
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/sep/24/missouri-executes-marcellus-williams