Category: Troy Davis

Execution date set for Troy Davis

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Larry Cox addresses Troy Davis rally in Atlanta

By Alan Bean

Now that the state of Georgia has established a September 21-28 window for the execution of Troy Davis, organized support for the Georgia defendant will ramp into high gear.  Amnesty International, the organization most closely associated with the Davis case, will be coordinating the opposition.  Executive Director Larry Cox has issued a brief statement which includes this important piece of historical context:

The Board stayed Davis’ execution in 2007, stating that capital punishment was not an option when doubts about guilt remained.  Since then two more execution dates have come and gone, and there is still little clarity, much less proof, that Davis committed any crime. Amnesty International respectfully asks the Board to commute Davis’ sentence to life and prevent Georgia from making a catastrophic mistake.

Laura Moye, the AIUSA attorney closest to the Davis case, released this statement:

It is because of cases like Troy Davis’ that support for the death penalty has dropped significantly in this country. The possibility of human error is far too high, and the chances of executing the innocent are far too real.

 

Order signed for Sept. execution of Troy Davis

By GREG BLUESTEIN, Associated Press

ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia is scheduling the execution later this month of an inmate who has won widespread support for his claims of innocence in the 1989 slaying of a Savannah police officer, his attorney said Tuesday. (more…)

European Union supports commutation for Troy Davis

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Baronness Catherine Ashton

By Alan BeanNo one was particularly surprised when Jesse Jackson called on the state of Georgia to commute the death sentence against Troy Davis.  Now the European Union is going to bat for Davis.  According to the Canadian Press, the EU is concerned that an innocent man may soon be scheduled for execution.

Popes and former presidents have previously gone to bat for Mr. Davis and this isn’t the first time the European Union has expressed its concerns about the case.  International outrage over this case is understandable–the United States is the only western democracy that uses the death penalty.  It’s a key ingredient of what Sarah Palin calls “that American exceptionalism”.  (more…)