Vol. 72/No. 42      October 27, 2008

On October 15, a judge in Chatham County, Georgia, signed Davis’s death warrant. The Department of Corrections immediately scheduled his execution for October 27 at 7:00 p.m.

Amnesty International has called for a rally at the Georgia State Capitol in Atlanta at 6:00 p.m. October 23, calling it a “Global Day of Action for Troy Davis.”

“I haven’t given up hope,” Davis’s sister Martina Correia told the press. “We’re going to fight until we can’t fight any more.”

Davis’s 1991 conviction for killing Mark MacPhail, an off-duty Savannah, Georgia, cop, was based on the testimony of nine witnesses. Seven have recanted or changed their testimony. Several said they had been pressured by the cops to say they saw Davis shoot MacPhail. Of the two remaining witnesses, one could not identify Davis at the time of the killing, but changed his story at the trial.

Witness testimony was the backbone of the prosecution case. The gun used in the killing was never found; nor is there any physical evidence or DNA linking Davis to the shooting.

The case has attracted wide attention. Archbishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa and former U.S. president James Carter have lent their support to Davis. Supporters from around the world have sent messages to the Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles asking that the board grant him clemency. Rallies have been held in front of the state capitol in Atlanta, and supporters have marched in Savannah.

In March 2008 the Georgia State Supreme Court voted 4-3 to refuse to grant Davis a new trial. In September the parole board refused to grant him clemency. Twice, once in July 2007 and again in September 2008, he came within 24 hours of execution.
 
 
Related articles:
Stop the execution of Troy Davis!  
 
 
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