ATLANTA—Some 135 people joined a vigil here May 9 at the Georgia state capitol to support death-row inmate Troy Davis. Framed-up on charges of killing a white police officer in Savannah, Georgia, in 1989, Davis’s final appeal was rejected by the U.S. Supreme Court March 28, opening the door to a new execution date being set by the state of Georgia.

An international defense campaign against the unjust conviction of Davis has won broad support over the years, resulting in postponement of his execution date three times. Seven of the nine nonpolice witnesses against Davis have retracted or changed their testimonies. Davis’s family and supporters are asking the Georgia State Board of Pardons and Parole to grant him clemency.

—LISA POTASH