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Execution set for man who killed woman during burglary

KBIA

ST. LOUIS (AP) — An execution date of January 28th has been set for a man who fatally stabbed a St. Louis County woman during a 1998 burglary.

The Missouri Supreme Court on Wednesday set the execution date for 45-year-old Marcellus Williams. It would be Missouri's first execution in 2015, after a state record 10 inmates were put to death this year.

Lisha Gayle was killed at her home in University City. Williams was burglarizing the home when he discovered that Gayle was in the shower. He took a knife from the kitchen and attacked her when she came downstairs, stabbing her more than 20 times before stealing a laptop computer and other items.

Gayle was a reporter for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch for 11 years before leaving the paper in 1992.

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