Is Missouri Planning to Execute an Innocent Man? 

Help Us #SpareLeonardTaylor  #JusticeForLeonardTaylor #JusticeForRaheem

Leonard “Raheem” Taylor was sentenced to death for a crime he did not commit and is scheduled to be executed on February 7, 2023, despite overwhelming new evidence that he is innocent. We need your help to stop the state murder of Raheem. 

Sign this petition and join us in asking Governor Parson to grant a reprieve to Raheem so that the St. Louis County CIRU will review the new evidence in his case, and he can have the opportunity to prove his innocence. 

Follow @madpmo and sign up for MADP's email list (bit.ly/MADPEmails) to ensure you are getting the latest info about the #JusticeForRaheem campaign!

Background

In 2004, Leonard “Raheem” Taylor was convicted for the murders of Angela Rowe and her three children, Alexus Conley, AcQreya Conley, and Tyrese Conley. Throughout the trial and appeals, Raheem maintained his innocence. Even court documents show that the murder occured AFTER the time Raheem left Angela’s home, where he last saw her and her children alive, and headed to the airport to visit his daughter in California. The evidence is clear, and yet Raheem has been on death row since 2008. 

Raheem is one of 29 individuals sentenced to death under prosecutor Bob McCulloch in St. Louis County. Michelle Smith, Co-Director at Missourians for Alternatives to the

Death Penalty said, “We need to move into the next phase of holding Bob McCulloch

accountable for decades of prosecutorial misconduct, racial biases, and targeting of the poor and marginalized. For many, including the six individuals sentenced to death from St. Louis County, the lingering atrocities of his reign persist.``

Raheem currently has an application before the St. Louis County Conviction and Incident Review Unit (CIRU) asking for review because all of the evidence - both old and new - presents a convincing case that Mr. Taylor is innocent of the four murders for which he is condemned to die. 

With your support, we can move Governor Parson to grant Raheem a reprieve so that all of the evidence can be presented. 

Airtight Alibi 

During the trial, there was substantial doubt about Mr. Taylor’s guilt:

• Throughout appeals, attorneys argued that ineffective counsel during the initial trial failed to present significant evidence that would prove him innocent of the crimes.
• In recent months, his legal team has located several other witnesses who will provide testimony supporting Mr. Taylor’s claim of innocence.  
• At least one of these witnesses is willing to provide sworn testimony that the victims were still alive after Mr. Taylor had flown to California to visit with his daughter. Lawyers are working to meet and interview these witnesses in person.  
• Mr. Taylor’s current counsel has located several other witnesses who will provide testimony in support of Mr. Taylor’s claim of innocence. 

Despite all of this, the state of Missouri is working to pursue an execution while there is an active multi-state investigation underway that could prove his innocence. This is why we need your support.  

Innocence and the Death Penalty

In 2021, Death Penalty Information Center (DPIC) released a special report on Innocence and the Death Penalty called The Innocence Epidemic. The data show that for every 8.3 executions carried out in the United States, a wrongfully condemned death-row prisoner is exonerated. We can not make another mistake in Missouri and execute an innocent person. This is why we need your support to #SpareLeonardTaylor

We are asking Governor Parson to grant a reprieve to Leonard “Raheem” Taylor so the St. Louis County CIRU can review the new evidence in his case, which could prove his innocence.