Troy Davis Execution Stayed

11th Circuit Stays Execution in Georgia Killing
Greg Bluestein
The Associated Press
October 27, 2008
A federal appeals court gave a late reprieve Friday to a Georgia man set to be executed for the 1989 killing of an off-duty police officer in a case in which several witnesses have changed their accounts of the crime.
Troy Davis, 40, was scheduled to be executed Monday for the murder of Savannah police Officer Mark MacPhail. But the three-judge panel of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals stayed the execution and ordered his attorneys to prove whether he can meet "stringent requirements" to press his appeal.
Davis' supporters have called for a new trial because seven of the nine key witnesses against him have recanted their testimony, and the doubts about his guilt have won him the support of former President Jimmy Carter and other prominent advocates.
It was the third time since July 2007 that Davis has been spared the death penalty by a late court decision.
"I'm ecstatic. This movement is building and building and building," said Martina Correia, Davis' sister. "This is going to crumble the justice system in Georgia if they don't do the right thing."
The victim's family was distraught by the news of the decision.
"For 17 years, this has been hanging over us. It needs to be finished," said Anneliese MacPhail, the slain officer's 75-year-old mother. "I'm very disappointed, upset, angry. Just put it all together. I cannot believe this is happening again."
[...] But Davis' lawyers say new evidence proves their client was a victim of mistaken identity. Besides those who have recanted their testimony, three others who did not testify have said Sylvester "Red" Coles -- who testified against Davis at his trial -- confessed to the killing.
Coles refused to talk about the case when contacted by The Associated Press during a 2007 court appearance and has no listed phone number.
[...] Savannah District Attorney Spencer Lawton also said he doubts the new testimony meets the legal standards for a new trial. And while the recantations may seem persuasive to some, Lawton said, "to others of us it invites a suggestion of manipulation, making it very difficult to believe."
Davis was set to be executed in July 2007, but Georgia's pardons board postponed the execution less than 24 hours before it was to be carried out.
[...] Then, two hours before his scheduled Sept. 23 execution, the Supreme Court issued a stay, sparking a celebration among Davis' supporters gathered outside the state prison. A few weeks later, though, the high court cleared the way for the execution when it decided not to give Davis another hearing.
As their legal options dwindled, Davis' attorneys appealed to the 11th Circuit Court. In a brief filed Wednesday, they claimed the execution was "constitutionally intolerable" and asked the court to delay the execution to pursue claims Davis is innocent.
The court on Friday gave defense attorneys 15 days to file a legal brief on their arguments.
A death penalty expert said the court's decision was surprising.
"This is extraordinarily rare. The law is very demanding and the Court of Appeals is a very conservative court," said Stephen Bright, a death penalty expert who is the head of the Southern Center for Human Rights. "It's just not something that one would expect from this court." [...]
http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1202425548076

Stop State Sponsored Murder

The state of Georgia and the Supreme Court are about to murder an innocent man. It will come as no surprise that this man is a working class African American. Democracy Now! has covered this story in great detail, which you can find here (http://www.democracynow.org/blog/2008925amy_goodmans_new_column_troy_davis_and_the_supreme_decision). Today, the European Parliament condemned it (see AP story below). Remember: A rich, white man has NEVER been executed by the state in America!

Rally For Troy Davis

Thursday, October 23 5:30 p.m.
33rd Street and 8th Avenue, (SE corner)
New York City, NY

Stand Firm For Justice! Rally For Troy Davis In New York City

Join fellow activists in a rally to demand justice for Troy Davis

On Oct 14 the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear Troy Davis?s petition and the State of Georgia has set an execution date of October 27, ignoring overwhelming evidence of his innocence. People throughout the United States are seriously disturbed by the thought of a possibly innocent man being executed. Nothing can undermine public faith in a criminal justice system faster than an execution when there are still serious doubts about guilt.

Join fellow New Yorkers on Thursday Oct. 23 as we call for the Georgia State Board of Pardons and Paroles to grant justice to Troy Davis and stop his execution.

For more information contact Alyce Stark, asce4@earthlink.net or Jamie Wood, jwood@aiusa.org

http://www.amnestyusa.org/events/northeast/october-23-rally-for-troy-davis-in-new-york-city/page.do?id=1091898

Here is the AP story:

EU legislature protests US death sentence

2 hours ago

STRASBOURG, France (AP) — The European parliament is strongly protesting plans to execute a man in the United States who has been sentenced to death for killing a police officer.

Troy Davis is scheduled to be executed in Georgia on Oct. 27, despite calls from his supporters to reconsider because seven of nine key witnesses against him have recanted their testimony. [my bold]

EU parliament head Hans-Gert Poettering says all executions are violations of human rights. He says the condemned American symbolizes the fate of all death row inmates, and vows the EU legislature "will fight against the death penalty under any circumstances everywhere in the world."

The 40-year-old Davis was sentenced to death for the 1989 murder of 27-year-old Savannah police officer Mark MacPhail. His case has also attracted support from former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and South Africa Archbishop Desmond Tutu.

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5jL2z4O3e7QjA1_VrRlYg0ynDmGSAD93VH4NG0