This is the fourth time the state of Georgia has set a date to
murder Troy Davis. The power of the people saved him the first three times. We
can do it again. And this time, we can convince the Board of Pardons and Parole
to grant him clemency, FREE TROY DAVIS and return him to the loving arms of his
family! Read new statements by two of Troy's sisters below.
Go to http://sfbayview.com/2011/troy-davis%E2%80%99-sister-kim-my-brother-got-me-out-of-my-wheelchair-please-help-me-save-his-life/
to see photos of Troy's family and three very important videos. Use the links
below or online to help stop the execution, set for Wednesday, Sept. 21.
September 18, 2011
by Kimberly Davis
I have a lifetime’s worth of reasons for wanting to save my
brother Troy.
When I was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis at age 14, Troy left high
school, signed up for night classes and started working so that he could take
me to physical therapy and help my mother out financially.
It was my brother’s help and reassurance through my long struggle that led
me to get out of my wheelchair. He is my hero.
But as you know, the state of Georgia has set an execution date for Troy on
Sept. 21, based on supposed evidence against him that does not exist.
But we believe that with God’s help, we will prevail.
Will you help us to continue to fight to save his life? I need you to reach
out to the Georgia Board of Pardons and Parole one last time. Watch this video
message I recorded for the NAACP, and follow the instructions to send your
letter: [See this new video at www.sfbayview.com.]
Last Thursday, Troy called to tell me he had just heard about the 660,000
petitions delivered to the Board of Pardons and Parole in his name. He was
deeply moved. He told me he knew that had supporters around the world, but that
he had no idea that the support was that widespread.
My family is so very appreciative of the support from NAACPers like you, but
the fight is not over. We cannot let up now.
Twenty years ago, Troy’s conviction was based entirely on circumstantial
evidence and witness testimony. In the past two decades, seven of the nine
witnesses in his case have recanted their testimony or changed their stories.
There was never a shred of physical evidence or DNA connecting Troy to the
crime. No murder weapon has ever been found. In fact, one of the jurors
recently stated that if she knew then what she knows now about the case, she
would never have sentenced Troy to death.
I know that my love for my brother is not reason enough to take him off
death row. It is not reason enough to stay his execution order.
But there is simply no evidence to suggest that Troy committed the crime.
That’s why I am asking for help from NAACP members. You have come through for
us before, and we need your help now more than ever.
This Monday, Sept. 19, the Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles will meet to
decide Troy’s fate. It is Troy’s last chance.
Please watch my video message to the NAACP, then tell the board to stay
Troy’s execution order and grant him clemency, because there is simply too much
doubt.
Hundreds of thousands of people have already spoken out in the name of
justice for Troy. On behalf of my family, I’m asking you to please add your
voice today, and help us save my brother’s life.
The NAACP, which issued this statement, and its national president, Ben
Jealous, has been a leader in the campaign to stop the execution of Troy Davis,
scheduled for this Wednesday, Sept. 21. Learn more at www.naacp.org.
by Martina Davis Correia as told to Jen Marlowe and Monifa
Bandele
My son was six weeks old when I first brought him to meet his uncle, Troy
Davis. You would have thought I gave Troy a gold bar. He was scared to hold my
tiny baby. I literally had to just put De’Jaun in his arms and walk away. And
he was like, “But he’s so little. Come get him, get him, get him.” I said, “No,
you get him. You hold him.” It was such a magical moment, because it was like I
was giving my brother this gift.
As a young child, De’Jaun didn’t understand that my brother, his uncle was
incarcerated, much less slated for death. When the family was getting ready to
leave after a visit, he’d say, “Come on, Troy, let’s go, let’s go!” But he
couldn’t go with us, and my mom would say, “He’s in school. He can’t come. One
day, he’ll come home with us.”
As De’Jaun grew older, I explained to him that his uncle was in prison. But
I had not yet told him that Georgia planned to kill him. He confided in his
uncle more than anyone else. When De’Jaun was 12 years old, it became clear to
me that my son understood far more than I had realized.
Our dog, Egypt, had gotten out of the yard and had been hit by a car. We
immediately brought Egypt to a vet who told us that the dog’s leg was broken in
three places and would need extensive surgery to be repaired. If Egypt did not
have the surgery, she would have to be put to sleep. The cost of the surgery
was upwards of $10,000.
As I drove De’Jaun home, I wondered how in the world I would come up with
$10,000. Putting Egypt down might be the only realistic possibility.
In the silence of the ride, De’Jaun turned to me and said, “Mom, are you
going put my dog to sleep like they’re trying to put my Uncle Troy to sleep?”
I had to swallow this giant lump in my throat to hold back the tears. I
didn’t know that he related the two things. That he knew they were trying to
kill his Uncle Troy. And he knew about which method that they would use to kill
him. At that point, I decided that if I had to pawn my car, I wasn’t going to
be able to put our dog to sleep.
In addition to dealing with his uncle facing execution, carrying a full load
of advanced placement classes in his high-school’s International Baccalaureate
program, my son lives with the stress of me being critically ill. I have been
battling stage-four breast cancer since De’Jaun was 6 years old. My original diagnosis
was six months or less. That was over 10 years ago.
My brother, Troy Davis, is on death row for the 1989 tragic murder of
Savannah police officer Mark MacPhail. On Aug. 19, MacPhail was gunned down
while rushing to the rescue of a homeless man being pistol-whipped in the
parking lot of a Greyhound bus station. The day after the murder, a man named
Sylvester “Red” Coles told the police that Troy was the shooter. Troy, then 19
years old, was arrested and eventually convicted in 1991, primarily on the basis
of eyewitness testimony.
There is no physical evidence linking Troy to the crime. The murder weapon
was never recovered. Yet he was sentenced to death. He has been on death row
for 20 years, despite the fact that the case against him has completely unraveled.
In fact, seven of the nine non-police witnesses later recanted or changed their
testimonies, many stating that police coercion and intimidation led to their
initial implication of my brother. Several new witnesses have come forward and
implicated Sylvester Coles as the shooter.
This is Troy’s fourth time facing execution. De’Jaun remembers the first
execution date vividly. It was July 17, 2007. He was 13 years old. We went to
go see Troy, and Troy wasn’t really worrying about himself. He was mostly
worried about his family — about us. I was looking at my mother. She was
praying, praying, praying. It was a lot of people constantly praying,
constantly praying.
Troy gave each family member a duty. What did he task his young nephew? He
told him, “Just continue to do good in school, do what’s right, pick the right
friends, watch over the family, and just respect the family. Respect your mom,
your grandmother, and your aunties. Do what you love and have a good
profession.” The execution was stayed within 24 hours of being carried out. The
next year, Troy came within 90 minutes of being executed.
My son is wise beyond his years. He’ll say, “My uncle is not the only one
going through this type of pain … a lot of people really want someone to hear
their case but they don’t have the power and resources.” He knows that over 130
death row inmates have been exonerated, found innocent since 1973,
demonstrating just how many innocent people are convicted and sentenced to
death.
On March 28, 2011, the Supreme Court denied Troy’s final appeal, clearing
the way for the state of Georgia to set a fourth execution date. Two weeks
later, our mother passed away from “natural causes.” De’Jaun was the one who
found her. She had just received a clean bill of health from her doctor the day
before her death. I don’t think she could take another execution date. I
believe she died of a broken heart.
Over the years support has grown. Amnesty International, NAACP, the ACLU,
ColorOfChange.org, Bishop Desmond Tutu, President Jimmy Carter and many more
have stood up for Troy.
There is #toomuchdoubt in my brother’s case: There’s no physical evidence;
seven out of nine witnesses have recanted or changed their testimony; there’s
evidence that suggests there may be another shooter. Click here for
more details.
But still, last week, the state of Georgia decided to issue an execution
date – Sept. 21.
We are turning up the truth, staying hopeful and vigilantly praying that Troy’s
life won’t be ended on Sept. 21.
Our supporters have launched a number of campaigns directing people to the
many ways they can support Troy. Please join them for Troy, for me and for my
son.
This story first appeared on MomsRising.org,
where moms and people who love them go to change our world.
Tell them: “Stop the execution of Troy Davis! Grant him clemency!”
The growing
range of scholars, world leaders and prominent figures who are also
demanding justice – including former President Jimmy Carter, Archbishop Desmond
Tutu, John Legend, R.E.M., Russell Simmons, Mia Farrow, Indigo Girls, a former
governor of Texas and a former member of Congress from Georgia – is simply
awe-inspiring.
The outpouring of support you’ve shown for Troy Davis so far has been
phenomenal – more than 660,000 of you have signed the petition for clemency and
nearly 500 events have popped up in small towns and big cities alike all over
the United States. Supporters from the U.K., France, Denmark, Brazil, Hong
Kong, Australia and other countries have also joined in to lend their voices.
Send our brother Troy some love and light. Troy Anthony Davis, 41, has been
on death row in Georgia for more than 19 years: Troy A. Davis, 657378, GDCP
G-3-79, P.O. Box 3877, Jackson GA 30233.
This is the fourth time the state of Georgia has set
a date to murder Troy Davis. The power of the people saved him the first three
times. We can do it again. And this time, we can convince the Board of Pardons
and Parole to grant him clemency, FREE TROY DAVIS and return him to the loving
arms of his family!
--
Mary Ratcliff
SF Bay View
(415) 671-0789
www.sfbayview.com