Troy Davis Denied Clemency; To Be Executed Weds

I am gripped by sorrow this evening. Two men were put to death by the government today "in the name of the people." One was admittedly guilty - the other was most likely not.

I do not want the government imposing death on anyone in my name. It's barbaric, and since humans are never without fault, as long as the death penalty remains in effect there will always be some innocent people murdered by the state.

It's immoral, in my opinion, and disgusting. I'm utterly sickened.

 

Heard some more 'research" on this case, watching news shows and interviews....

- A juror who was present (a Black woman) said back then, she felt he was guilty as hell, and that each of the eyewitnesses were adamant and very clear on IDing Troy. She said had she been on the jury today with the "recants or changed stories", she'd have voted not guilty.

- The dead officer's mother said what people don't know is that Troy was responsible for a robbery earlier that day in which the victim was shot in the face with the same gun. Bullet casings from his gun were found at that scene, and later at the cop scene.

- In 17 years, and 4 appeals, no witness ever bothered to recant, despite having 4 chances to do so and 17 years to come forward - until this last appeal.

- The following day after the cop was killed, a person who was present and witnessed it went to the police to tell them Troy was the shooter. Troy was a well known criminal, apparently.

- When the word went out as a result, Troy fled the State to his sister's, who claimed he did so as he feared for his life. A pastor agreed to return him driving him 4 hours back. The Pastor said he was never questioned by the police about any of their conversation during the drive (but I wonder why the Pastor hasn't revealed the details of the conversation nonetheless in 21 years).

- In DP case history, Troy's case has had more appeal reviews than any other, with 2 previous stays right before execution.

- In 20 years of appeals and reviews, every Judge who has reviewed it - including a special independent judge requested of the State Supreme Court judges to get an outside opinion, all have found his conviction justified.

- Of the nine Supreme Court Judges tonight...all nine independently voted against the stay. Not one dissented, not one recused. Troy had every legal review under the law, made available to him...more-so than any other death case convict. Not one lawyer found new/compelling proof of innocence, not one judge found just cause to overturn his conviction.

Finally in all this case, the victim most forgotten is the "off-duty police officer" as he has been addressed as so many times. His name was Mark MacPhail. He served our country for 6 years as an Army Ranger and then became a police officer to help continue to serve...
The night he died, he was off-duty and ran to the aid of a homeless man being merciless beaten. He died for doing that. May his soul finally rest.

Troy's, too.

 

I do not feel for Lawrence Russell Brewer. But I noticed no-one protested the execution of the man who murdered Mr Byrd. (not even here). No one the world over came to his aid and begged for mercy. Where were the anti-death penalty supporters?
They were too busy protesting the execution of a case that would garner more sympathy for their cause, it seems.

60% of Americans favor the DP..down from 70%, but more than half of this country's citizens, nonetheless. There are less DP cases in the history of our country...because there is less crime.

On the matters of race, more Whites get the DP. More Whites also get the DP when they kill Whites, than Blacks do for killing Blacks. The racial shift becomes apparent in that more Blacks get the DP for killing Whites, than they do Blacks.

 

this

 

this

has the life of a black man degraded so much, that you can kill one without concrete evidence and 'reliable' testimony?

 

An oppossing view

Former DA on Troy Davis case says doubts are 'manufactured'

by Mechele R. Dillard on 2011-09-21


Spencer Lawton, the district attorney who prosecuted convicted cop killer Troy Davis 20 years ago spoke with 11 Alive News in Atlanta on Tuesday, and indicated that the doubt being raised in the case is “manufactured.”

Although hundreds of thousands of supporters have tried to persuade the Georgia Pardons and Paroles Board to spare the life of Davis, the board has held fast, refusing Davis clemency. Lawton, who is the former district attorney for Georgia’s Eastern Judicial Circuit, prosecuted the case in 1991, and says that the actual court case was/is solid; it is only in the “realm of public relations” where Davis appears innocent of killing Officer Mark MacPhail.

For example, it has been widely publicized that seven of the nine witnesses against Davis have recanted testimony. According to Lawton, this is untrue. The witnesses themselves have never appeared in a court to recant, Lawton pointed out in his interview with 11 Alive News’ Brenda Wood. Additionally, U.S. District Judge William Moore picked apart almost every affidavit signed by the witnesses, Lawton indicated, saying that some of the witnesses were not under oath, and others did not directly recant their testimony. Lawton took a sharp view of the role of Amnesty International and Davis’s defense team and their roles in the recantations.

"It doesn't strike me as improbable that with the passage of time a witness could be approached by a well versed and articulate person whose job it is to get a recantation from them and talk them into a certain amount of present uncertainty about their prior testimony," Lawton said to Wood. "That gets the camel's nose in the tent."

Additionally, Lawton said that claims that there is little or no evidence against Davis are erroneous. Davis was also convicted of shooting another man on the same day Officer MacPhail was shot—a conviction never disputed by Davis and his defense team—but the gun firing the shots was never recovered. However, there was strong ballistic evidence.

"There is ballistic evidence based upon the cartridges fired from the gun," Lawton said. "The cartridges match."

Also, the argument by some Davis supporters that Sylvester Coles is the real murderer does not fly, Lawton said.

"There is no evidence against Sylvester Coles," he said. “These people who hold themselves out as interested in nothing but fairness are willing to have Sylvester Coles condemned for this murder on far less evidence than has been introduced against Troy Davis," Lawton said.

In fact, Lawton said, the outrage surrounding this case has nothing to do with Davis or the facts of the case, and everything to do with anti-death penalty advocates.

"It has nothing to do with Troy Davis," Lawton told Wood. "It has everything to do with the death penalty."

"I'm not a fan of the death penalty," Lawton said. "It is a component of Georgia's law. I was district attorney. My duty is to uphold the law."

Lawton, now retired, also prosecuted the infamous case of Jim Williams, the subject of the book and subsequent motion picture, Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil.

http://www.huliq.com/10473/former-da-troy-...ufactured-video

 

i agree with kunochi. there's a lot of info out there on troy davis. he wasn't a saint.

this guy had numerous opportunities and over 20 years to prove his innocence.

just because he says he's innocent doesn't mean he is.

tired of many blacks on here who just scream racism 24/7 without knowing the facts.

 

It's been subsequently shown the ballistics evidence from both shootings DID NOT match.

IMO the police pinned the crime on the wrong dude, the other man who was there with Davis.
But like they say, the guy who cops a deal first is the one who wins and apparently that's what happened IMO.

 

Very sad news to wake up to this morning...

 

That IS annoying. Then you have replies all over the place and have to look in several threads to follow the same story and all who replied. KR keep it in the same thread and people will appreciate that you do that so they can follow more easily and quickly. I know when I have a day from hell and want to keep up I appreciate not having to open a bunch of threads.

 

I completely agree, TP. The death penalty needs to be abolished.

 

I'm with you tp. Not an supporter of the death penalty. There is too much room for error for the stakes to be someones life.

 

i have no problem with the death penalty.

i believe in an eye for an eye.

what they do now, putting you to sleep like a dog at the vet is actually too humane.

 

Unless you're the one being put to sleep

 

Exactly and what if a few years after you are dead someone comes forward with evidence to clear you. Will sorry be good enough???!! We'll be really really realllllly sorry though we can't bring you back to life.

 

If sorry meant anything we wouldn't need jail.

 

The victim's son did.

The officer's family were so adament for capitol punishment, which made it sound like a revenge factor.

Jame Byrd's son has advocated to spare the life of a viral racist murderor who did NOT show ANY remorse for what he did.

Something just doesnt add up. Can someone post one white family who wsnted the killer's life spared???

Black poeple are more likely to show forgiveness to the perpatrator:

 

The Kennedys which is why that piece of shit Sirhan Sirhan is still alive.

 

I'm against the death penalty, but if it is going to be the law, I'd like to see it applied evenly across the board, without bias. As for Troy Davis not being a 'saint', I didn't know that was an offense punishable by death. And for those who don't know, it is not easy to get tests and evidence reviewed post-conviction. It takes an enormous amount of work because the system is averse to correction and does not like to review itself.

 

So noted. And I have to remember to put all of my replies(to the extent possible) in a single response, rather than 5 consecutive ones to 5 different people. Takes up too much space.