nursebeeme
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GA - Troy Davis fails to prove his innocence to Supreme Court
- Thread starter believe09
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BeanE
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Slate Slate
Troy Davis to die via lethal injection at 7pm tonight, despite outcry--VIDEO: slate.me/qbxvT4
4 minutes ago
Troy Davis to die via lethal injection at 7pm tonight, despite outcry--VIDEO: slate.me/qbxvT4
4 minutes ago
BeanE
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Unbelievable that Twitter is blocking #troydavis from trending
Gardenlady
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Interesting item on the Twitter topic-blocking issue:
http://www.singleblackmale.org/2011/09/20/troy-davis-and-the-twitter-black-out-conspiracy/
http://www.singleblackmale.org/2011/09/20/troy-davis-and-the-twitter-black-out-conspiracy/
belimom
Speak the truth even if your voice shakes~M.Kuhn
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I just texted my brother back/forth about it. He is an attorney in Georgia and has followed the case. His take on it is that he believes Troy Davis is guilty. As for the DP, he says not to forget that Troy Davis admitted to shooting someone else in the face earlier that night, disfiguring that person and causing brain damage. My brother still admits it is a sad case all around, but I think he feels that justice is being served.
I still could not be a part of this myself, but I'm really trying to calm down about it. I just hope and pray that they aren't executing an innocent man...
I still could not be a part of this myself, but I'm really trying to calm down about it. I just hope and pray that they aren't executing an innocent man...
BeanE
Inactive
EDITORIAL - New York Times
A Grievous Wrong
Published: September 20, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/21/opinion/a-grievous-wrong-on-georgias-death-row.html
A Grievous Wrong
Published: September 20, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/21/opinion/a-grievous-wrong-on-georgias-death-row.html
BeanE
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You can't fix dead. We need to stop the execution, and give this man the polygraph he is asking for. Investigate further.
nursebeeme
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There is a 30 minute video of the Prosecutor who originally handled the case. It's a really good video and this is the first time he has spoke out in public about the case.
He talks about the evidence and the recantations. Talks about 'manufactured doubt' created by Amnesty International.
_______________________________________________
Lawton cast scrutiny on Amnesty International and Davis's defense team for rounding up recantations, presenting them all at once as Davis's preliminary execution date approached.
"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. "That gets the camel's nose in the tent."
Lawton also took issue with claims by Davis' supporters that there was little to no physical evidence indicating that Davis shot and killed Officer Mark MacPhail.
Davis was convicted in the shooting of another man on the same day MacPhail was shot. That conviction has never been disputed. But, the gun that fired the shots in both crimes was never recovered.
"There is ballistic evidence based upon the cartridges fired from the gun," Lawton said. "The cartridges match."
http://www.11alive.com/news/article...-recantations-manufactured-in-Troy-Davis-case
He talks about the evidence and the recantations. Talks about 'manufactured doubt' created by Amnesty International.
_______________________________________________
Lawton cast scrutiny on Amnesty International and Davis's defense team for rounding up recantations, presenting them all at once as Davis's preliminary execution date approached.
"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. "That gets the camel's nose in the tent."
Lawton also took issue with claims by Davis' supporters that there was little to no physical evidence indicating that Davis shot and killed Officer Mark MacPhail.
Davis was convicted in the shooting of another man on the same day MacPhail was shot. That conviction has never been disputed. But, the gun that fired the shots in both crimes was never recovered.
"There is ballistic evidence based upon the cartridges fired from the gun," Lawton said. "The cartridges match."
http://www.11alive.com/news/article...-recantations-manufactured-in-Troy-Davis-case
EmMomma
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I've followed this case for years.
I'm still on the fence about guilt/innocence. Mr. Davis certainly wasn't a model citizen.
With that said, if there is an *inkling* of doubt in so many people's minds, WHY is this execution going ahead as planned?
This really makes me sick to my stomach...
I'm still on the fence about guilt/innocence. Mr. Davis certainly wasn't a model citizen.
With that said, if there is an *inkling* of doubt in so many people's minds, WHY is this execution going ahead as planned?
This really makes me sick to my stomach...
belimom
Speak the truth even if your voice shakes~M.Kuhn
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But my concern: was is the same finger that pulled the trigger?
katydid23
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I think there are a lot worthier victims for me to focus my energies on. He admitted to shooting another man in the face during a party that same night. Then he was viciously beating up a homeless man, when that cop confronted him in an attempt to save the man. I am not sure if he was the one who shot the cop or not, although I think he did,but he is guilty of many violent actions. Maybe this is karma. imoo
Isabelle
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I just don't understand all of this. What if it were you or me and we were innocent? It could happen. Maybe he is guilty, I don't know, though it sounds like there is strong reasonable doubt. Were his attorneys competent, did they mess up?
Witnesses say it was. He was convicted of shooting another man earlier and he never disputed that.
I think there are many protesting this execution simply because they are anti-death penalty, not because they actually believe he is innocent. It makes me wonder why those folks don't try to have the death penalty abolished instead of trying to free a guilty man? I think most of those people would just he rather get a life sentence, but in Georgia this is the law of that state and he was convicted on that law.
The recanting witnesses the defense claims were never called before the Supreme Court when they were given the chance too. To me that makes their witnesses not credible.
I personally oppose the death penalty in ALL cases; even if the devendant is clealy guilty.
As for the issue of Davis' guilt or innocence, it is certainly relevant to any chance for a last minute stay of execution, or more likely,as an illustration of how the DP can lead to "killing the wrong guy"
One way that Davis' supporter can attack the issue of "factual guilt or innocence" is to release the forensic evidence that was found on the shorts that were taken from Davis' sisters house. The "shorts" were ruled inadmissable because the search was illegal but the prosecution has claimed they had Young's blood on them. If they did not have Young's blood, it would mean that Davis probably did not pistol whip Young as claimed by the prosecution. If Young's blood were on the shorts however, it would definitly look bad for Davis. It would "put a gun in his hand" seconds before MacPhail was shot.
As for the issue of Davis' guilt or innocence, it is certainly relevant to any chance for a last minute stay of execution, or more likely,as an illustration of how the DP can lead to "killing the wrong guy"
One way that Davis' supporter can attack the issue of "factual guilt or innocence" is to release the forensic evidence that was found on the shorts that were taken from Davis' sisters house. The "shorts" were ruled inadmissable because the search was illegal but the prosecution has claimed they had Young's blood on them. If they did not have Young's blood, it would mean that Davis probably did not pistol whip Young as claimed by the prosecution. If Young's blood were on the shorts however, it would definitly look bad for Davis. It would "put a gun in his hand" seconds before MacPhail was shot.
katydid23
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For this exact thing to happen to you, first, you would have to shoot a man in the face at a party. Then you would run off, and find a homeless man, and begin savagely beating him. Then a cop would have to confront you, in front of other witnesses, to try and save the homeless man. Then the cop would have to be shot, and the bullets in his body would have to match the bullets from the man you shot earlier that night. If all that happened, then this thing could happen to you.
Why did the defense fight to have the bloody shorts excluded from evidence? That's what really bothers me about this. When they have been given chance after chance to make their case, they don't do it. Same with the recanting witnesses, they (defense) never called them to testify at the SC hearing.
Gardenlady
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I don't see how it's pertinent WHY some people are protesting this particular execution. Some of us, like me, are against the death penalty in all cases. That doesn't negate the fact that in Davis's case there exists more than the usual doubt. Neither reason for protest cancels the other out.
The sad fact is that by and large, Americans are either pro death penalty, or ambivalent to it. Only the cases that involve a real chance that the condemned is innocent get big coverage and notice. The chance of executing an innocent person is rightfully one that makes even the most hardened death penalty proponents hesitate.
Many of us do protest, or speak out, against other executions, yes, even ones where the condemned is most probably guilty. I'm not sure why you would assume we don't. After all, those of us who are anti in ALL cases are the ones who speak up against them all - it's those who are ambivalent in most cases who are garnering the attention in this case, because of the high degree of doubt.
Personally, I don't care why or when the great numbers of people speaking up in this case came to their opinions and decided to act/speak. I'm just glad that they are, and I welcome their voices.
HRCODEPINK
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I just want to say a couple of things here. As I have mentioned before, I have no idea if he is guilty or not. But doubt should never EVER be there when you are taking someone's life. That said:
No, Troy was not a model citizen, but when we say that he shot someone in the face, the devil, for me is in the details. Not that any of this makes it okay, but I think that it should be noted that he didn't just walk up and shoot the man in the face. He shot out the back of a car window and the bullet bounced around and lodged in the person's jaw. Again, not okay, but not a heinous and it sounds when it is said that he shot someone in the face at a party. Not clear on why he shot at the car.
The "bloody shorts" were pulled out of his mother's dryer and there was no way to tell whose blood was on them or how long it had been there.
The time line is not certain and it is possible that Troy was no where near the Burger King, because there may not have been enough time for the first shooting to happen and him to get to the BK to shoot the officer.
Of the 9 people who testified against him, 7 have recanted, 1 that didn't recant was the original suspect who pointed the finger at Troy and 10 people have come forward stating that it was the other guy, Redd whatever. (I'm in a hurry because I have to get my kids off the bus and I have a bunch of assignments due tonight.)
And finally, according to documents presented to the courts by the defense team, the ballistic report is not necessarily on the up and up. A person from the GBI (Georgia Bureau of Investigation) claims in the docs that there are none of the similar characteristics of the bullet removed from the guy who was shot in the face and the officer. The only similarity from what I can tell is the size of the bullet and both men were carrying the same type of gun that night. This is certainly a big issue when there could have been police misconduct. It would not be out of the realm of possibility that the ballistics testimony was flawed due to misconduct as well, by officers helping their own.
When there are any doubts, I see no reason why a life sentence isn't appropriate. He has been removed from society and cannot harm anyone else. How does killing him help anything now?
ETA: According to this article, Redd Coles admitted to starting the fight with the homeless man:
"Later on that day, Sylvester "Red" Coles turned up at the police station with his attorney. As it turned out, he claimed, he was part of the altercation that took place before the MacPhail shooting, and he wanted the chance to tell his story. He was there, he said, but he wasn't the shooter. He had a .38 caliber revolver, this was true, but he had given it away earlier that evening. Yes, he had been involved in the altercation with Larry Young- as a matter of fact, he was the one who started it. Yes, it was true he had walked up to Larry Young and told him not to turn around, “cause you don’t know me, I’ll shoot you,” But, he insisted, he was not the man who attacked Larry Young with a pistol. And he was not the man who shot Officer MacPhail. That man was Troy Davis."
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/09/19/1018124/--TooMuchDoubt-The-Story-of-Troy-Anthony-Davis
Why would he tell the man he would shoot him in the same statement that he had "given his gun away" that night? Huh? Too many questions. I do not agree with the death penalty, but I do not fight with it because it is the law when I believe a person is guilty. If I have a single shred of doubt, that is a different story. I would not put my name on any petition or speak in public, even in a forum if I don't have doubts, because I do work an innocence case in my state (where my doubts are strong enough that I would bet my own life on it), and my credibility needs to remain impeccable. In this case, I have too many doubts to be quiet when a person's life is on the line.
No, Troy was not a model citizen, but when we say that he shot someone in the face, the devil, for me is in the details. Not that any of this makes it okay, but I think that it should be noted that he didn't just walk up and shoot the man in the face. He shot out the back of a car window and the bullet bounced around and lodged in the person's jaw. Again, not okay, but not a heinous and it sounds when it is said that he shot someone in the face at a party. Not clear on why he shot at the car.
The "bloody shorts" were pulled out of his mother's dryer and there was no way to tell whose blood was on them or how long it had been there.
The time line is not certain and it is possible that Troy was no where near the Burger King, because there may not have been enough time for the first shooting to happen and him to get to the BK to shoot the officer.
Of the 9 people who testified against him, 7 have recanted, 1 that didn't recant was the original suspect who pointed the finger at Troy and 10 people have come forward stating that it was the other guy, Redd whatever. (I'm in a hurry because I have to get my kids off the bus and I have a bunch of assignments due tonight.)
And finally, according to documents presented to the courts by the defense team, the ballistic report is not necessarily on the up and up. A person from the GBI (Georgia Bureau of Investigation) claims in the docs that there are none of the similar characteristics of the bullet removed from the guy who was shot in the face and the officer. The only similarity from what I can tell is the size of the bullet and both men were carrying the same type of gun that night. This is certainly a big issue when there could have been police misconduct. It would not be out of the realm of possibility that the ballistics testimony was flawed due to misconduct as well, by officers helping their own.
When there are any doubts, I see no reason why a life sentence isn't appropriate. He has been removed from society and cannot harm anyone else. How does killing him help anything now?
ETA: According to this article, Redd Coles admitted to starting the fight with the homeless man:
"Later on that day, Sylvester "Red" Coles turned up at the police station with his attorney. As it turned out, he claimed, he was part of the altercation that took place before the MacPhail shooting, and he wanted the chance to tell his story. He was there, he said, but he wasn't the shooter. He had a .38 caliber revolver, this was true, but he had given it away earlier that evening. Yes, he had been involved in the altercation with Larry Young- as a matter of fact, he was the one who started it. Yes, it was true he had walked up to Larry Young and told him not to turn around, “cause you don’t know me, I’ll shoot you,” But, he insisted, he was not the man who attacked Larry Young with a pistol. And he was not the man who shot Officer MacPhail. That man was Troy Davis."
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/09/19/1018124/--TooMuchDoubt-The-Story-of-Troy-Anthony-Davis
Why would he tell the man he would shoot him in the same statement that he had "given his gun away" that night? Huh? Too many questions. I do not agree with the death penalty, but I do not fight with it because it is the law when I believe a person is guilty. If I have a single shred of doubt, that is a different story. I would not put my name on any petition or speak in public, even in a forum if I don't have doubts, because I do work an innocence case in my state (where my doubts are strong enough that I would bet my own life on it), and my credibility needs to remain impeccable. In this case, I have too many doubts to be quiet when a person's life is on the line.