In 1991 Troy Davis was convicted of the murder of police officer Mark MacPhail. While there is strong evidence that Davis is not guilty the Georgia State Board of Pardons and Paroles just denied his appeal for clemency this morning. He is now scheduled to be executed by lethal injection tomorrow (Wednesday, September 21st) at 7 PM in Georgia. Here is some background on the case from the Wall Street Journal this morning:
Mr. Davis, 42 years old, was convicted and sentenced to death in 1991 for the murder of Mr. MacPhail, an army veteran and a 27-year-old father of two small children. Mr. MacPhail was shot to death in a Burger King parking lot in Savannah in 1989.
Mr. Davis was arrested shortly after the crime, and multiple witnesses, some of them jailhouse informants, testified that Mr. Davis committed the murder. Years later, several witnesses recanted or altered their original testimony. Some said one of the witnesses was in fact the killer. Some jurors on the original trial now say they would have changed their decision.
Please consider signing a petition as a last ditch effort for clemency: http://www.amnestyusa.org/
