Saving Death Row Inmate Troy Davis's Life Is AlterNet's Top Take Action Campaign of the Week
Troy Davis was sentenced to death in 1991 for the 1989 murder of off-duty police officer Mark MacPhail in Georgia. Davis was convicted despite that the murder weapon was never found and that there was no physical evidence linking him to the crime. Since the original trial, 7 out of the 9 eyewitnesses have recanted or contradicted their original testimony. This new evidence has never been heard in a court of law.
For 18 years Davis has maintained his innocence. Davis claims he went to aid a homeless man who was being beaten in a parking lot, but that he fled the scene upon seeing the assailant had a gun. MacPhail, who was working security at a nearby Greyhound bus station, intervened and was shot to death. Another man has been implicated in the shooting, who also happens to be the one of two witnesses who have not recanted their testimony.
On September 23rd, 2008 Troy Davis came within two hours of being put to death by the State of Georgia via lethal injection. The U.S. Supreme Court issued a stay of execution. This was not a first for Davis though, who has now come close to being executed three times, which is inhuman and highly unusual. Davis has written on his website “I want you to know that the trauma placed on me and my family as I have now faced execution and the death chamber three times is more punishment that most can bear."
For 18 years Davis has maintained his innocence. Davis claims he went to aid a homeless man who was being beaten in a parking lot, but that he fled the scene upon seeing the assailant had a gun. MacPhail, who was working security at a nearby Greyhound bus station, intervened and was shot to death. Another man has been implicated in the shooting, who also happens to be the one of two witnesses who have not recanted their testimony.
On September 23rd, 2008 Troy Davis came within two hours of being put to death by the State of Georgia via lethal injection. The U.S. Supreme Court issued a stay of execution. This was not a first for Davis though, who has now come close to being executed three times, which is inhuman and highly unusual. Davis has written on his website “I want you to know that the trauma placed on me and my family as I have now faced execution and the death chamber three times is more punishment that most can bear."
posted by temporal at 5/06/2009
1 Comments:
I was asked today to sign a petition to get this man another trial. I have issues with the appeals system in this country, as many criminals who should have been executed long ago are constantly appealing ... wasting taxpayers money to save their miserable existences. However, this case did spark my interest after I researched it, I feel that there is reasonable doubt that he did it ... however I find it hard to believe that 8 people were coerced, surely one person out of those 8 would have refused, and gone public about their interrogation. Surely defense prosecution would have made a reasonable argument that the testimony of somebody on parole, and the testimony of an intoxicated individual is not valid. Aside from this I find it hard to fathom why an innocent man would flee to Atlanta before turning himself in ... I'm sure he's more involved than he would have us believed. But if he witnessed a crime then he had a responsibility to report it.
If this man is given another trial, and found "not guilty" (which does not necessarily mean that he is completely innocent). I think that those 7 individuals should be charged with Perjury and sentenced to serve time accordingly.
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