Death Penalty

Capital Punishment Is Wrong, Unfair

This is a rewrite.

In the column originally prepared for this space, I said that Troy Davis was scheduled to die Monday -- to be killed, actually, by an executioner for the state of Georgia.

But -- stop the presses! -- that's no longer accurate. On Monday, Davis, 40, will still be alive. Or at least, he won't be dead because of anything the state did. That's because on Friday, an appeals court granted him a stay.

Posted in Death Penalty

Update: Court Stays Execution of Troy Davis

ATLANTA - A U.S. court granted a stay of execution on Friday to a convicted murder due to die by lethal injection next week in a case the Pope and Nobel Peace Prize winner Archbishop Desmond Tutu have described as troubling.

The federal appeals court in Atlanta granted a stay of around 25 days for Troy Davis so lawyers could file a brief arguing the execution was unconstitutional because he is innocent, said Jason Ewart, a lawyer for Davis.

Davis had been due to put to death on Monday.

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Nine Executioners

"The assessment of the death penalty, however well designed the system for doing so, remains a human endeavor with a consequent risk of error that may not be remediable." - Judge Carolyn King of the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, 2006.

Having reported on the Supreme Court in books and columns for decades, I am well aware of King's assessment, but never before have I seen such an outright denial of fundamental justice as, on Oct. 14, when the Supreme Court sent Troy Anthony Davis to be executed.

Posted in Human Rights, Death Penalty, Prison system

Rallies Protest Impending Execution of Troy Davis

Rallies were held around the globe Thursday as part of a final push to save the life of death row inmate Troy Anthony Davis.

An hour north from where Monday's scheduled execution is to occur, roughly 200 protesters - including Davis's mother and sister - gathered at the state Capitol urging Gov. Sonny Perdue to intercede.

"The whole world is watching Georgia," said Larry Cox, executive director of Amnesty International USA. "Nowhere in the world is there a more serious violation of human rights than what Georgia is about to do to Troy Davis."

Posted in Death Penalty

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 23, 2008
2:31 PM

CONTACT: Amnesty International USA
Wende Gozan at 347-622-1092 or Jared Feuer at 404-668-8388

In Final Days Before Troy Davis Execution Date, Concerned Public Worldwide Demands Action

More than 25 Solidarity Rallies Take Place in United States and Abroad

ATLANTA, Georgia - October 23 - As the scheduled execution date for Troy Anthony Davis fast approaches, national and international support for Davis is on the rise, with the public demonstrating its outrage over the refusal to hear evidence in Davis' favor, Amnesty International USA (AIUSA) reported today.

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Posted in Death Penalty

Supreme Court Allows Troy Davis Execution

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday cleared the way for Troy Anthony Davis' execution, declining to enter a contentious debate as to whether the condemned inmate was the real killer of a Savannah police officer in 1989.

The court, without explanation, refused to hear his appeal even though seven of nine key prosecution witnesses have recanted their testimony since the 1991 trial. Just three weeks ago, the high court had halted Davis' execution with less than two hours to spare.

Posted in Death Penalty

World Is Moving Towards Banning Death Penalty, says Reprieve

The world is moving closer to the final abolition of the death penalty, according to the latest figures published to coincide with World Day against the Death Penalty today.

Currently, five nations are responsible for almost all the state executions carried out in the past year.

So far, a total of 137 countries have abolished the death penalty in law or practice, while 60 countries retain its use, usually for people convicted of murder.

Posted in Death Penalty

Secrets of Iraq's Death Chamber

Like all wars, the dark, untold stories of the Iraqi conflict drain from its shattered landscape like the filthy waters of the Tigris. And still the revelations come.

The Independent has learnt that secret executions are being carried out in the prisons run by Nouri al-Maliki's "democratic" government.

Posted in Human Rights, Politics, Death Penalty, Iraq

Compassion, Certainly, but Justice, Too

The first time, Troy Davis came within 24 hours of death. The second time, he came within two.

Last year, it was a Georgia clemency board that stepped in to block his execution. Last month, it was the Supreme Court. Davis, the 39-year-old convicted killer of Mark MacPhail, a Savannah, Ga., police officer, was granted a stay to allow the court to consider whether to hear his appeal for a new trial. A decision is expected on Monday.

Posted in Death Penalty, Prison system

Troy Davis and the Supreme Decision

Troy Anthony Davis was scheduled to die by lethal injection Tuesday. Two hours before the state of Georgia was to execute him, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a stay until Monday. It had earlier agreed to hear Davis' case on Sept. 29, but Georgia set his execution date six days before the hearing.

Posted in Human Rights, Death Penalty, Prison system