[Ppnews] Supreme court turns down Troy Davis

[Political Prisoner News]

High court turns down Ga. death row inmate

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5hPnsRNDfBO3hfXh1ZEJGA7F1HaxgD93QB0203

By GREG BLUESTEIN – 12 minutes ago

ATLANTA (AP) ­ The Supreme Court has cleared the 
way for a Georgia man to be put to death for 
killing a police officer two weeks after it 
halted his execution to consider his appeal.

Troy Davis asked the high court to intervene in 
his case and order a new trial because seven of 
the nine witnesses against him have recanted 
their testimony. Former President Jimmy Carter 
and South Africa Archbishop Desmond Tutu are 
among prominent supporters who have called for a new trial.

The justices granted Davis a reprieve on Sept. 
23, less than two hours before his scheduled 
execution. But they declined Tuesday to give his 
appeal a full-blown hearing. It was not 
immediately clear when his execution will be scheduled.

Davis' supporters, who erupted in joy when his 
execution was halted last month, said they were 
heartbroken when they received word of the decision.

"Oh, God. I think it's disgusting, terrible. I'm 
extremely disappointed," said Martina Correia, 
Davis' sister. "Well, we still have to fight. We can't stop."

Davis was convicted of the murder of 27-year-old 
officer Mark MacPhail, who was working off-duty 
as a security guard at a bus station. MacPhail's 
family said they were relieved.

"I was hoping that would be the decision," said 
MacPhail's mother, Anneliese MacPhail. "I'm 
hoping that soon we will have some peace, that this will all be over."

A divided Georgia Supreme Court has twice 
rejected Davis' request for a new trial, and had 
rejected his appeal to delay the execution on 
Monday afternoon. The Georgia Board of Pardons 
and Paroles also turned down his bid for clemency.

MacPhail had rushed to help a homeless man who 
had been pistol-whipped at a nearby parking lot, 
and was shot twice when he approached Davis and two other men.

Witnesses identified Davis as the shooter, and at 
the 1991 trial, prosecutors said he wore a "smirk 
on his face" as he fired the gun.

But Davis' lawyers say new evidence proves their 
client was a victim of mistaken identity. Besides 
those who have recanted their testimony, three 
others who did not testify have said Sylvester 
"Red" Coles ­ who testified against Davis at his 
trial ­ confessed to the killing.

Coles refused to talk about the case when 
contacted by The Associated Press during a 2007 
court appearance and has no listed phone number.

Prosecutors have said the case is closed. They 
also say some of the witness affidavits simply 
repeat what a trial jury has already heard, while 
others are irrelevant because they come from witnesses who never testified.

Associated Press Writer Mark Sherman contributed 
to this report from Washington.




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