Troy Davis hearing completed last week; decision may take a while

The SCOTUS-ordered evidentiary hearing for Georgia death row inmate Troy Davis wrapped up on June 24. The federal judge in the case must now decide whether Davis's attorneys presented adequate evidence to prove his innocence and thereby spare him from execution.

Laura Kagel, George Death Penalty Abolition Coordinator for Amnesty International USA (AIUSA) summarized the two days of hearings on AIUSA's Human Rights Now blog:

>> Day 1: Wednesday, June 23 (posted June 24)

>> Day 2: Thursday, June 24 (Posted June 25)

In her Thursday summary, Kagel noted that "Judge Moore promised not to delay, but cautioned that a ruling would not be forthcoming in the next couple of weeks."

At the close of Thursday's hearing, Anne Emanual, an AIUSA legal analyst, released the following statement:

"Given the evidence that emerged from the two-day hearing it is clear that the state's case against Troy Davis is thin and tainted. Today's hearing underscores the deepening doubt that has plagued this case. It is difficult to imagine that a jury would convict Davis today after hearing four of the witnesses who convicted Davis 19 years ago testify in open court before a judge that they lied. One eyewitness testified for the first time that he saw his relative, the alternative suspect, Sylvester 'Redd' Coles, shoot police officer Mark Allen MacPhail in 1989."

Will it be enough to free Troy Davis and spare him from the lethal injection?

Unlike his original trial, in which the prosecution (theoretically) had to prove guilt, in this evidentiary hearing the onus was on Davis's attorneys to clearly prove his innocence.

Fingers crossed.

Stay tuned for updates.

Background:

Troy Davis has been sitting on Georgia's death row since 1991 for the murder of a police officer which he maintains he did not commit.

Davis's original trial was flawed, and most of the witnesses have since recanted or contradicted their stories. There is no physical evidence linking him to the crime, and his conviction was based solely on that questionable testimony by witnesses.

In other words, there is reasonable doubt as to Davis's guilt. And there is no excuse to execute someone when there's reasonable doubt as to his guilt.

Unfortunately, the Georgia officials didn't want to be bothered with having to review the new evidence that could prove Davis's innocence. They just wanted to kill him and get the whole case out of the way.

Fortunately, the Supreme Court had a different opinion, and ordered that the evidence be reviewed in federal court. And that is what led to last week's hearing.