Missouri Corrections Officers Urge Governor to Grant Clemency to 'Model Inmate' Brian Dorsey

Despite pleas from prison staff and family, Governor Parson, known for denying all clemency requests, faces decision on Dorsey's scheduled April 9 execution.

60 members of the Missouri Department of Corrections staff have written a letter to Governor Mike Parson, urging him to grant clemency to Brian Dorsey, who is scheduled to be executed on April 9 for the 2006 murder of his cousin and her husband.
Dorsey, who has been described as a 'model inmate', is housed in an 'honor dorm' for his good conduct and has been allowed to work as a barber, cutting the hair of prisoners and officers.
Dorsey's execution is also opposed by his cousin, Jenni Gerhauser, who was also related to the victims. She argues that the situation is not 'black and white' and that Dorsey's defense was inadequate.
Dorsey's attorney, Megan Crane, filed an 80-page petition last month arguing that Dorsey was denied effective counsel and was experiencing drug psychosis at the time of the crime, making him incapable of deliberation, the requisite intent for capital murder.
Despite these pleas, Governor Parson has denied every clemency request in a death penalty case since he became governor in 2018.