Amnesty International
Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Thursday, October 23, 2008

In Final Days Before Troy Davis Execution Date, Concerned Public Worldwide Demands Action
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More than 25 Solidarity Rallies Take Place in United States and Abroad

Contact: Wende Gozan at 347-622-1092 or Jared Feuer at 404-668-8388

(Atlanta) – 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.

Amnesty International has mobilized its worldwide membership during its “Global Days of Action for Troy Davis” from now through Oct. 27. To date, rallies are scheduled to be held in 15 cities across the United States, including Atlanta; Tempe, AZ; Palm Springs, CA; Colorado Springs, CO as well as in Canada, France, the United Kingdom, Belgium, Finland and Italy (for the complete list, please visit www.amnestyusa.org/troy.)

“This upsurge of support is proof-positive that conscientious citizens will not back down in the face of adversity when a gross injustice is about to be committed,” said Larry Cox, executive director of AIUSA, as he prepared to address hundreds at a rally in Atlanta Thursday evening. “They can see through the detractors who are attempting to muddy the waters in Davis’ final days, and refuse to accept the notion that, in the United States of America, evidence indicating a man’s innocence does not matter.”

The rallies, which have been planned throughout the week, come as the Troy Davis legal team has requested to file a second habeas petition in the 11th Circuit, and clergy from Georgia and beyond are signing an appeal to Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue, urging him to exert his influence with the Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles and ask them to grant clemency in this case.

Troy Davis is scheduled to be executed on Monday, Oct. 27, 2008 at 7:00 p.m. Davis was convicted in 1991 of killing Savannah police officer Mark Allen MacPhail. Authorities failed to produce a murder weapon or any physical evidence tying Davis to the crime. In addition, seven of the nine original state witnesses have since recanted or changed their initial testimonies in sworn affidavits. In March 2008, the Georgia Supreme Court decided against a new evidentiary hearing for Davis in a narrow 4-3 ruling, and earlier this month, the U.S. Supreme Court denied his petition for a writ of certiorari.

“There are obvious questions of potential innocence that demand attention,” said Jared Feuer, Southern regional director of AIUSA. “The state of Georgia must understand the seriousness of this case and prevent the execution of Mr. Davis if it is to preserve the public’s faith in our justice system.”

Since the launch of its February 2007 report, Where Is the Justice for Me? The Case of Troy Davis, Facing Execution in Georgia, Amnesty International has campaigned intensively for clemency for Davis, collecting well over 300,000 petition signatures and letters from across the United States and around the world. To date, internationally known figures such as the Pope, Archbishop Desmond Tutu and Jimmy Carter have all joined the call for clemency, as well as lawmakers from within and outside of Georgia.

Amnesty International is a Nobel Prize-winning grassroots activist organization with more than 2.2 million supporters, activists and volunteers in over 150 countries campaigning for human rights worldwide. The organization investigates and exposes abuses, educates and mobilizes the public, and works to protect people wherever justice, freedom, truth and dignity are denied.

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For more information on the death penalty, please visit www.amnestyusa.org/troy.

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