Amnesty International Condemns Decision to Deny Troy Davis Clemency

Amnesty International
Press Release
Monday, September 19, 2011

Amnesty International Condemns Decision to Deny Troy Davis Clemency
Calling It An ‘Outrageous Affront to Justice’

Contact: Wende Gozan Brown at 347-526-5520, wgozan@aiusa.org

(Atlanta) – Following the announcement that the Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles denied clemency to death-row inmate Troy Anthony Davis, Larry Cox, executive director of Amnesty International USA (AIUSA), released the following statement:

“It is unconscionable that the Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles has denied relief to Troy Davis. Allowing a man to be sent to death under an enormous cloud of doubt about his guilt is an outrageous affront to justice.

“In 2007 the Board vowed that no execution would go forward unless there was ‘no doubt’ about guilt, a vow that has now been rendered meaningless. To fail to re-examine the facts, including allegations about an alternate suspect, and allow this execution to go forward is an injustice to both the Davises and the MacPhails. Amnesty International urges the Board to reconsider its decision immediately, and for District Attorney Larry Chisolm to seek to vacate the death warrant. Should Troy Davis be executed, Georgia may well have executed an innocent man and in so doing discredited the justice system.

“The case against Davis unraveled long ago. Seven out of nine original state witnesses recanted or changed their original testimonies, some alleging police coercion. Ten people have pointed to one of the remaining witnesses as the actual killer. There is no murder weapon that links Davis to the crime. Any notion of physical evidence that demonstrates Davis’ guilt has been debunked.”

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Take action!

Click here to urge Larry Chisolm, District Attorney of Chatham County, Georgia to withdraw the death warrant. You can also call or fax District Attorney Chisolm at 912-652-7308 (phone) or 912-652-7328 (fax).

In addition, ask the Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles to reconsider their decision. Email the Board at Clemency_Information@pap.state.ga.us.