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{{Infobox Person
{{Infobox Person
| name = Troy Anthony Davis
| name = Troy Anthony Davis
| image =
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Revision as of 19:34, 10 December 2008

For the Canadian Football League running back, see Troy Davis.
Troy Anthony Davis
BornOctober 9, 1968
Known forClaiming wrongful conviction as a result of actual innocence and facing execution in the State of Georgia
Websitehttp://www.troyanthonydavis.org/

The Troy Davis case concerns the case of Troy Anthony Davis, an African American from the U.S. state of Georgia who was convicted and sentenced to death in 1991 for the August 19, 1989 murder of an off-duty Savannah Police Officer named Mark MacPhail on the basis of now-challenged eyewitness testimonies. There was no physical evidence against him and the weapon used in the crime was never found.[1] Since the trial, seven of the nine prosecution witnesses who had linked Davis to the killing have recanted or contradicted their original trial testimony, claiming police coercion or questionable interrogation tactics.[2] One of the witnesses who has remained consistent, Sylvester "Redd" Coles, has been himself the subject of considerable suspicion as the real killer, since he was seen acting suspiciously the night of Officer MacPhail’s murder and has been heard boasting that he killed an off-duty police officer.[1] Five newly discovered witnesses have said that Coles, who was present at the crime since with a gun, committed the crime.[1]

Troy Davis has steadfastly maintained his innocence throughout the years. He has repeatedly asked the courts to examine the new evidence which, he claims, proves his innocence, but the courts have, so far, refused to grant him a new trial, or even conduct a hearing in which the recanting eyewitnesses will be cross-examined to determine the credibility of Davis’s new evidence.[1] A bare majority of four Georgia Supreme Court Justices denied Davis’ motion for new trial and evidentiary hearing, citing procedural requirements, while three of the seven justices, including Chief Justice Ward, concluded that the new evidence is sufficient for an actual innocence claim and justifies a new hearing.[3]

Troy Davis came close to being executed with executions scheduled three times - in July 2007, September 2008, and October 2008 - but in each case a stay of the execution was ordered by the courts or the State Board of Pardons and Paroles. On October 24, the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals issued the most recent stay of execution to consider Davis’ request for a second federal habeas petition.[4] If they grant this petition, Davis could ask for an evidentiary hearing from the US District Court for the Southern District of Georgia that would allow the recanting witnesses to be heard and cross-examined in a judicial proceeding.

National and international legal organizations, such as Amnesty International,[1] the National Lawyers Guild,[5] and the Innocence Project,[6] have strongly condemned the planned execution of Davis despite the existence of reasonable doubt, and have pleaded with authorities to grant Davis a new trial. They argue that a new trial should be granted based on the new evidence showing that seven of the nine original witnesses have subsequently recanted or contradicted their trial testimony.[1] These eyewitnesses have stated that their original testimony against Davis was due to police coercion or intimidation.[1]

Many American leaders and international figures have spoken out on behalf of Davis. President Jimmy Carter,[7] Pope Benedict XVI,[8] Desmond Tutu[8] Presidential candidate Bob Barr,[8] and former FBI Director William S. Sessions[9] are among the well-known personalities who have severely criticized Georgia authorities for their plan to execute a possibly innocent man, and have called upon the courts to grant Davis a new trial. In addition, the European Union, the European Parliament, and the Secretary General of the Council of Europe have intervened and asked US courts to uphold international standards which prohibit the execution of anyone whose guilt is in doubt.[10]

The three-judge panel of the 11th Circuit Court, Judges Joel Fredrick Dubina, Rosemary Barkett, and Stanley Marcus, heard oral arguments in Davis' case on December 9, 2008.[11] They are expected to render a decision that will determine Davis' right to prove his innocence, and whether he will be allowed to have a judicial hearing to weigh the new, exculpatory evidence that has hitherto never been examined in a court of law.

The trial

On August 19, 1989, Officer Mark MacPhail, an off-duty policeman, was working as a security guard at a Burger King restaurant in Savannah, Georgia. Responding to a scuffle that erupted between several men who were hanging out in the parking lot, he intervened, and was then shot. He died of gunshot wounds at the scene of the crime. [12] Troy Anthony Davis, who initially fled from the scene together with the other men, surrendered to the authorities on August 23. Under interrogation he confessed to being present at the crime scene,[13] but stated another man, Sylvester "Redd" Coles, had shot Officer MacPhail. Davis asserted his innocence and a jury trial was held.[2] He was convicted and sentenced to death in August 1991.[2]

According to the trial transcripts, the following is what occurred on the night of the murder:

Sylvester "Redd" Coles, a black man, was hassling a homeless man Larry Young, also black, as Young walked from the liquor store with his newly purchased beer. Redd demanded that Young give Redd his beer. Young refused. Young walked away from Redd toward the Burger King parking lot, where Young's girlfriend, Harriet Murray, waited for Young's return. Redd became angry and persisted in his demand for the beer. As the two neared the parking lot, Murray heard the commotion and saw the man hassling Young. She heard him say "You don't know me. I'll shoot you." At that point, she saw that man pull a gun from his waistband. Murray ran for cover.[14]

Redd claimed at trial that he was the instigator. Redd and Young both testified at trial that Redd was the one who had made the threat to shoot Young.[14] While Redd was arguing with Young, Darrell "D.D." Collins and Troy Davis, both black men, entered the Burger King parking lot. All trial witnesses stated that neither Collins nor Davis spoke to Young. The pistol whipping of Young occurred shortly after Redd was alleged to have threatened to shoot the homeless man. Young had an open gash on his right temple. According to trial witnesses, he sought help from the passengers in a van at the drive-through window and the Burger King manager, Leo Bishop. Young was standing between the van and the Burger King window when shots rang out.

Mark MacPhail was working off-duty but in full uniform as a security guard at the Burger King. He entered the parking lot after Young was assaulted. When the four black men saw MacPhail, each man started to run. According to Redd, when MacPhail yelled for all of them to stop running, Redd was the only one to stop; after this, MacPhail was shot.

Earlier on the day in question, a man named Michael Cooper was shot by Davis at a party in Cloverdale, a nearby neighborhood. A ballistics expert testified at the trial that the .38 calibre bullet that killed Officer McPhail could possibly have been fired from the same gun that wounded Michael Cooper, although he admitted that he had "some doubt" about this.[15][12]

Challenges to selection of jury

The jury in the trial was composed of seven blacks and five whites. Upon Davis raising racial bias in the jury selection process as an issue, it was determined the eight potential black jurors who were peremptorily challenged were removed from the jury pool for plainly non-racist reasons, specifically: for making explicit statements during voir dire (jury selection) that they would not consider applying the death penalty (five of eight), for implicitly or explicitly indicating a personal connection to Davis (two of eight), and for having had recent multiple contacts with law enforcement due to family troubles (one of eight).

In 1972, the US Supreme Court ruled that dismissal of jurors solely based upon personal objection to capital punishment is intolerable, stating in the majority opinion of Witherspoon v. Illinois,

A state may not have unlimited challenge for jurors who might have any objection to the death penalty.

In any case, whereas the county in which the trial was held was about two-thirds white and the jury pool was about 57% white, the seated jury proved even to be 58% black. Davis' challenge of racial bias in jury selection was therefore dismissed.[16] His conviction and death sentence was affirmed by the Supreme Court of Georgia in 1993.[17]

Appeals

State Habeas proceedings

Davis, like many indigent death row inmates, was represented during his state habeas proceedings by the Georgia Resource Center, whose investigation of his case was hobbled after radical congressional de-funding, which slashed the Center’s budget from from $1,000,000 to $300,000, and its staff of lawyers from eight to two.[18]

As a direct result, the vast majority of the recantations and other new evidence of Mr. Davis’ innocence went undiscovered and unheard as Davis’ appeals proceeded through state court.[18] In addition, Davis encountered restrictions on the scope of his ability to attack the conviction, due to limitations introduced by the 1996 Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act.[2] As a result, Davis' state Habeas petition was denied, and the Supreme Court of Georgia affirmed.[19]

Federal Habeas proceedings

In 2004, his state remedies exhausted, Davis submitted twenty-one exculpatory affidavits to a federal court in Georgia. These affidavits contained recantations from all but two of the prosecution eyewitnesses, the testimony of another previously undiscovered eyewitness and others with information bearing on the crime—all strong evidence suggesting that Davis is, in fact, innocent of the crimes for which he was sentenced to death.

Recanting witnesses

One of the key prosecution witnesses, Dorothy Ferrel, recanted her testimony, stating in a sworn affidavit that she was on parole when she testified, and was afraid that she'd be sent back to prison if she didn't agree to finger Mr. Davis. In her affidavit, she wrote:

I told the detective that Troy Davis was the shooter, even though the truth was that I didn't know who shot the officer.[20]

Another witness, Darrell Collins, a teenager at the time of the murder, said the police had “scared” him into falsely testifying by threatening to charge him as an accessory to the crime. He said they told him that he might never get out of prison.[20]

At least three witnesses who testified against Mr. Davis (and a number of others who were not part of the original trial) have since said that Sylvester "Redd" Coles admitted that he was the one who had killed the officer.

Prosecutors, however, argued that under Georgia law it was too late to present the recantations as evidence in an extraordinary motion for new trial.[21] and claimed that, in any case, the affidavits do not materially support Davis' innocence to merit a new trial. [3]

Citing procedural bars, the federal district court declined to consider any evidence of Davis’ actual innocence and rejected the petition.

Davis appealed to the 11th Circuit Court which heard oral argument in the case on September 7, 2005. Davis argued that since seven of the nine eyewitnesses recanted their testimony and voluntarily filed an affidavit stating they lied in the original trial, he is entitled to a retrial based on his actual innocence claim. Davis' lead lawyer, Kathleen Behan, also argued that there were multiple constitutional violations in the original trial, including failure to disclose Giglio materials (referring to State promises made to Dorothy Ferrell, a key witness for the State, in exchange for her testimony) and a Brady violation (referring to the State's failure to give Davis' lawyers exculpatory evidence).

On September 26, 2006, the 11th Circuit affirmed the denial of federal habeas corpus relief, claiming that all his innocence claims are procedurally barred.[22]

Davis filed a Certiorari petition to the US Supreme Court, but on June 25, 2007, the Supreme Court declined to hear the case.[13]

The Georgia Supreme Court 4-3 decision

On August 3, 2007, the Georgia Supreme Court voted to hear a discretionary appeal of Davis's 1991 conviction.[23] On March 17, 2008, the Georgia Supreme Court, by a slim 4-3 majority, denied the appeal, reasoning that "These affidavits lack the type of materiality required to support an extraordinary motion for new trial, as they do not show the witnesses’ trial testimony to have been the “purest fabrication.”"[3]

However, a three-justice minority led by Chief Justice Leah Ward Sears strongly dissented, and concluded that the new evidence is sufficient to state an "actual innocence" claim and justifies a new hearing. Chief Justice Ward wrote:

In this case, nearly every witness who identified Davis as the shooter at trial has now disclaimed his or her ability to do so reliably. Three persons have stated that Sylvester Coles confessed to being the shooter. Two witnesses have stated that Sylvester Coles, contrary to his trial testimony, possessed a handgun immediately after the murder. Another witness has provided a description of the crimes that might indicate that Sylvester Coles was the shooter...If recantation testimony, either alone or supported by other evidence, shows convincingly that prior trial testimony was false, it simply defies all logic and morality to hold that it must be disregarded categorically.[3]

Accordingly, the three-justice minority held that the new, exculpatory evidence is convincing enough to justify an order to the trial court to conduct a hearing and weigh the credibility of Davis’s new evidence, and to exercise its discretion in determining if the new evidence would create the probability of a different outcome if a new trial were held.[3]

Pleas by political and religious leaders

Davis's execution was initially scheduled for July 17, 2007.[2] On July 16, U.S. Congressman John Lewis spoke to the Georgia State Board of Pardons and Paroles on Davis's behalf, suggesting that Coles -- one of the two witnesses who had not recanted -- was the real killer.[24] The Board of Pardons received four thousand letters on Davis' behalf, including letters written by Desmond Tutu, Harry Belafonte, composer and human rights activist William Rowland and former FBI director William Sessions.[24] Sister Helen Prejean, Amnesty International US director Larry Cox, and the Council of Europe all spoke out against the planned execution.[25] The Vatican's nuncio to the U.S., Monsignor Martin Krebs, sent a letter on behalf of Pope Benedict XVI to Governor of Georgia Sonny Perdue urging him to spare Davis' life. Governor Perdue passed the letter to the Board, since Georgia is one of three U.S. states where the governor has no power to grant clemency, and the power to pardon rests solely with the State Board of Pardons and Paroles (though the governor retains political influence by virtue of his authority to appoint the Board members).[26]

On July 16, a ninety day stay of execution was granted by the Georgia State Board of Pardons and Paroles.[27] Davis' family and supporters expressed gratitude for the stay, and were optimistic about a favorable decision from the Board.[28] The Board, however, rejected Davis' petition for clemency, and authorized his execution.

In September 2008, President Jimmy Carter released a letter urging the State Board of Pardons and Parole to reverse its decision to deny clemency. In his letter, President Carter stated that flaws in Davis' conviction and appeals warrant a closer look, writing in part:

This case illustrates the deep flaws in the application of the death penalty in this country. Executing Troy Davis without a real examination of potentially exonerating evidence risks taking the life of an innocent man and would be a grave miscarriage of justice.[29]

That same month, former Republican Congressman and Presidential candidate Bob Barr wrote the Georgia Board saying that he is "a strong believer in the death penalty as an appropriate and just punishment," but that the proper level of fairness and accuracy required for the ultimate punishment has not been met in Davis's case.[30] Subsequently, Reverend Al Sharpton also called for clemency after he met and prayed with Davis on death row.[31] On September 11, 2008, hundreds of people turned out for a rally in support of Davis at the state capitol in Atlanta; the following day, the Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles nonetheless denied clemency for Davis.[32][33] Following the State Board's decision, Amnesty International condemned "in the strongest possible terms" the decision to deny clemency, and called it "a baffling and unbelievable perversion of justice."[34]

On September 22, 2008, Attorney Carol Gray, who assisted the Troy Davis defense team, issued a call to halt the execution until information can be obtained from a clerk at the motel across from the murder scene. Gray said that the clerk was heard screaming after shots were fired, but the clerk has so far not been identified or interviewed by either side. According to Gray, such identification could be made through existing tax records.[35]

Supreme Court's unexplained denial of Certiorari

On July 14, 2008, Davis' lawyers filed a PETITION FOR A WRIT OF CERTIORARI in the US Supreme Court, asking the Court to determine that the Eighth Amendment creates a substantive right of the innocent not to be executed. If such a right exists, the lawyers argued, then the Supreme Court should determine that Georgia Supreme Court's failure to grant an evidentiary hearing to review the cumulative substance and credibility of Davis’ new innocence evidence violates the Constitution (both the Eighth Amendment and the Due Process Clause).[36]


The Court initially did not stay the execution, and Georgia's Attorney General scheduled an execution date for September 23, 2008 at 7 pm.[37] Georgia state attorneys intended to carry out the execution despite their knowledge that the United States Supreme Court was scheduled to take up Davis' case the following week.[38] Ignoring calls from organizations, leaders and journalists to wait with the execution until the Supreme Court made a decision,[20] the Georgia authorities went ahead with the planned execution, taking Davis to the death chamber and giving him his last rites. Only a last-minute emergency stay, issued by the U.S. Supreme Court less than two hours before he was scheduled to be put to death, prevented the execution and saved his life.[10]

On October 14, 2008, however, the US Supreme Court issued a one-line decision declining to hear Troy Davis' petition, without offering any explanation. [39] Following the Supreme Court's unexplained rejection of Davis' petition, a new execution date was set for October 27, 2008.[40]

Second federal habeas petition

On October 23, 2008, Davis launched a second habeas petition, based on the new exculpatory affidavits that hitherto had not been examined in a court of law. In their court filing, attorneys argued that Davis is innocent and that his execution would violate the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments of the US Constitution. Davis' lawyers added -

Mr. Davis’ execution in light of new evidence concerning his innocence is constitutionally intolerable. Society recoils at state execution of an innocent person.[41]

Davis' lawyers requested an emergency stay of the pending execution, and on October 24, the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals issued a stay of execution to consider the newly-filed federal habeas petition. "Upon our thorough review of the record, we conclude that Davis has met the burden for a stay of execution," the court said in an order issued by Judges.[42] On November 19, 2008, the 11th Circuit ordered the parties to submit briefs, and on December 9, in an overfilled courtroom in Atlanta, GA, the three-judge panel who will determine Davis' fate (Judges Joel Fredrick Dubina, Rosemary Barkett, and Stanley Marcus) heard oral arguments from Davis' lawyers (Arnold & Porter lawyer Jason Ewart) and Chatham County prosecutors. They will render their decision at a later date.

Davis' biography

Troy Anthony Davis was born on October 9, 1968 (1968-10-09) (age 40).[13] Davis was a coach in the Savannah Police Athletic League and had signed up for service in the United States Marine Corps.[2]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g "Troy Davis". Amnesty International. 2008-10-27. Retrieved 2008-12-08.
  2. ^ a b c d e f Lowe, Brendan (2007-07-13). "Will Georgia Kill an Innocent Man?". Time Magazine. Retrieved 2007-07-17.
  3. ^ a b c d e "Davis v. State, 283 Ga. 438, Georgia Supreme Court, March 17, 2008" (PDF).
  4. ^ Bluestein, Greg (2008-10-24). "Appeals court halts execution of Ga. cop killer". Associated Press.
  5. ^ "Rally to Stop Execution of Troy Davis". Washington Peace Center. 2008-10-18. Retrieved 2008-12-08.
  6. ^ "Troy Davis Set to be Executed Tuesday Despite Evidence of Innocence". Innocence Project. 2008-09-22. Retrieved 2008-12-08.
  7. ^ "Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter Calls for Clemency for Troy Davis" (Press release). Carter Center. 2008-09-19. Retrieved 2008-12-08. {{cite press release}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  8. ^ a b c "Shrapton Seeks Clemency for Troy Anthony Davis". Atlanta Journal Constitution. 2008-09-20. Retrieved 2008-12-08.
  9. ^ "Reasonable doubt". The Economist. 2008-11-27. Retrieved 2008-12-08.
  10. ^ a b "Stay of Exeuction for Troy Davis". Amnesty International. 2008-09-24. Retrieved 2008-12-09.
  11. ^ "Judges differ as Davis seeks new trial". Atlanta Journal Constitution. 2008-12-10. Retrieved 2008-12-10.
  12. ^ a b http://law.ga.gov/00/press/detail/0,2668,87670814_87670929_121231342,00.html
  13. ^ a b c "Supporters seek reprieve for death row man". Melbourne Herald Sun. 2007-07-17. Retrieved 2007-07-18.
  14. ^ a b Deirdre O'Connor (2008-10-19). "Mr. Lawton, how many witnesses have to recant..." Savannah Now. Retrieved 2008-11-15.
  15. ^ "'Where is the justice for me?' The case of Troy Davis, facing execution in Georgia". Amnesty International. 2007-10-23. Retrieved 2008-12-09.
  16. ^ Davis v. State (of Georgia), 263 Ga. 5, Feb. 26, 1993
  17. ^ Davis v. State, 426 S.E.2d 844 (1993).
  18. ^ a b "Brief of Former Judges and Law Professors In Support of Petitioner's Application for Permission to File A Second Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus". Amicus Curiae Brief: 4–5. November 2008.
  19. ^ Davis v. Turpin, 539 S.E.2d 129 (Georgia Supreme Court 2000).
  20. ^ a b c Herbert, Bob (2008-09-18). "What's the Rush?". New York Times. Retrieved 2008-08-09. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  21. ^ Whoriskey, Peter (2007-07-16). "Execution Of Ga. Man Near Despite Recantations: Some Witnesses Now Say He Is Innocent". Washington Post. Retrieved 2007-07-23.
  22. ^ Davis v. Terry, 465 F.3d F.3d 1249 (11th Circuit 2006).
  23. ^ Skutch, Jan (2007-08-07). "Parole board bows out of Davis clemency bid". Savannah Morning News. Retrieved 2007-08-24.
  24. ^ a b Lewis, John (2007-07-16). "Rep. Lewis' statement at Davis hearing". Atlanta Journal Constitution. Retrieved 2007-07-18.
  25. ^ Carrier, Fanny (2007-07-17). "US inmate's execution on hold". AFP / The Sunday Times. Retrieved 2007-07-18.
  26. ^ Eckenrode, Vicky (2007-07-21). "Pope makes plea to spare life of Troy Davis". Savannah Morning News. Retrieved 2007-07-21.
  27. ^ Skutch, Jan (2007-07-17). "Davis wins 90-day stay of execution". Savannah Morning News. Retrieved 2007-07-17.
  28. ^ Lowe, Brendan (2007-07-16). "Stay of Execution for Georgia Man". Time Magazine. Retrieved 2007-07-23. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  29. ^ Jimmy Carter Urges Georgia to Stay Execution of Troy Davis
  30. ^ "Barr, Carter both seek clemency for Troy Davis". WTVM. 2008-09-19. Retrieved 2008-09-19. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  31. ^ Scott, Jeffry (2008-09-21). "Sharpton seeks clemency for Troy Anthony Davis". Atlanta Journal Constitution. Retrieved 2008-09-21. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  32. ^ Clemency Denied For Troy Davis from WSBTV.com. Retrieved on 2008-09-13.
  33. ^ "The Parole Board'S Consideration of the Troy Anthony Davis Case". Retrieved 2008-09-25.
  34. ^ "Amnesty International Condemns Parole Board Decision". Amnesty International. 2008-09-12. Retrieved 2008-12-09.
  35. ^ Weiner, Robert (2008-09-22). "Stay Georgia's Tuesday 7PM Execution of Troy Davis to Allow Critical Witness Interview Says Attorney Carol Gray, Who Assisted Defense Team". MarketWatch. Retrieved 2008-09-22. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  36. ^ "Petition for A Writ of Certiorari" (PDF). SCOTUS blog. 2008-07-14. Retrieved 2008-12-10.
  37. ^ "Troy Davis – Finality Over Fairness". Amnesty International. Retrieved 2008-12-09.
  38. ^ Herbert, Bob (2008-09-19). "What's the Rush?". The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-12-09. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  39. ^ "Docket for 08-66". US Supreme Court. 2008-10-14. Retrieved 2008-12-10.
  40. ^ "Troy Davis Execution Set, Again: Action Taken After Supreme Court Rejects Appeal". EURweb. 2008-10-16. Retrieved 2008-12-09.
  41. ^ "Lawyers launch new appeals effort". 2008-23-08. Retrieved 2008-12-08. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  42. ^ "Court issues stay of execution for Troy Davis". ajc.com. 2008-10-24. Retrieved 2008-12-09.
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