Troy Davis

{{Short description|American man executed in 2011}} {{Other people|Troy Davis}} {{pp-move}} {{Use American English|date=December 2025}} {{Use mdy dates|date=January 2015}} {{Infobox criminal | image_name = Troy davis.jpg | image_size = | image_caption = Davis booking mugshot on August 23, 1989 | birth_date = {{Birth date|1968|10|9}} | birth_place = {{nowrap|Savannah, Georgia, U.S.}} | death_date = {{Death date and age|2011|9|21|1968|10|9}} | death_place = Georgia Diagnostic and Classification State Prison, Georgia, U.S. | conviction = Malice murder | motive = To avoid arrest | conviction_penalty = Death (August 30, 1991) | conviction_status =Executed by lethal injection }}

[[File:GA Diagnostic Prison - Road Sign Photo.jpg|thumb|Georgia Diagnostic and Classification State Prison, where Davis was held on death row and where he was executed]]

'''Troy Anthony Davis''' (October 9, 1968 – September 21, 2011)<ref name="cnn"/><ref name="Davis executed"/> was a man convicted of and executed for the August 19, 1989, murder of police officer Mark MacPhail in Savannah, Georgia. MacPhail was working as a security guard at a Burger King restaurant and was intervening to defend a man being assaulted in a nearby parking lot when he was murdered. At Davis's 1991 trial, seven witnesses testified that they had seen him shoot MacPhail, and two others testified that Davis had confessed the murder to them. There were 34 witnesses who testified for the prosecution, and six others for the defense, including Davis. Although the murder weapon was not recovered, ballistic evidence presented at trial linked bullets recovered at or near the scene to those at another shooting in which Davis was also charged. He was convicted of murder and various lesser charges, including the earlier shooting, and was sentenced to death in August 1991.

Davis maintained his innocence up to his death. In the twenty years between his conviction and execution, Davis and his defenders secured support from the public, celebrities, and human rights groups. Amnesty International and other groups such as the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) took up Davis's cause. Prominent politicians and leaders, including former President Jimmy Carter, Rev. Al Sharpton, Pope Benedict XVI, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, former U.S. Congressman from Georgia and presidential candidate Bob Barr, and former FBI Director and judge William S. Sessions called upon the courts to grant Davis a new trial or evidentiary hearing. In July 2007, September 2008, and October 2008, execution dates were scheduled, but courts stayed each execution before they were to take place.

In 2009, the Supreme Court of the United States ordered the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Georgia to consider whether new evidence "that could not have been obtained at the time of trial clearly establishes [Davis'] innocence". The court held the evidentiary hearing in June 2010. The defense presented affidavits from seven of the nine trial witnesses whose original testimony had identified Davis as the murderer, but who it contended had changed or recanted their previous testimony. Some of these writings disavowed parts of prior testimony, or implicated Sylvester "Redd" Coles, who Davis contended was the actual triggerman. Evidence that Coles had confessed to the killing was excluded as hearsay because Coles was not subpoenaed by the defense to rebut it.

In an August 2010 decision, the court upheld the conviction. The court described defense efforts to upset the conviction as "largely smoke and mirrors"<ref>{{cite news |last=Lee |first=Trymaine |date=November 20, 2011 |title=Troy Davis' Execution Eve Sees Last-Minute Efforts To Save His Life |url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/09/20/on-eve-of-troy-daviss-exe_n_972291.html |newspaper=The Huffington Post |access-date=July 24, 2016}}</ref> and found that several of the proffered affidavits were not recantations at all.<ref>{{cite news |last=Lawton |first=Spencer |date=October 6, 2011 |title=Troy Davis fairly convicted, not railroaded |url=https://eu.savannahnow.com/story/lifestyle/columns/2011/10/06/column-spencer-lawton-troy-davis-fairly-convicted-not/13419854007/|newspaper=Savannah Now}}</ref> Subsequent appeals, including to the Supreme Court, were rejected, and a fourth execution date was set for September 21, 2011. Nearly one million people signed petitions urging the Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles to grant clemency.<ref name="Not In Our Name: Georgia Must Not Execute Troy Davis"/> The Board denied clemency<ref name="Georgia Board Denies Clemency for Troy Davis"/> and, on September 21, it refused to reconsider its decision.<ref name="state"/> After a last-minute appeal to the United States Supreme Court was denied, Davis was executed on September 21, 2011.<ref name="Troy Davis Executed After Stay Denied"/>

==Events of August 18–23, 1989== The charges against Troy Davis arose from the shooting of Michael Cooper, the beating of Larry Young and the murder of Officer Mark MacPhail on August 18–19, 1989.

On the evening of August 18, 1989, Davis attended a pool party in the Cloverdale neighborhood of Savannah, Georgia. As he left the party with his friend Daryl Collins, the occupants of a passing car yelled obscenities and began shooting at a gathering of neighborhood teenagers. A bullet was fired at the passing car<ref name="ajc111107"/> and Michael Cooper, a passenger, was struck in the jaw.<ref name="smn230891"/> Davis and Collins then went to a pool hall on Oglethorpe Avenue in the Yamacraw Village section of Savannah.<ref name="smn270891b"/>

Later that evening, Davis and Collins proceeded to the parking lot of a Burger King restaurant on Oglethorpe Avenue, not far from the pool hall.<ref name="smn270891b"/> There they encountered Sylvester "Redd" Coles arguing with a homeless man, Larry Young, over alcohol.<ref name="ajc111107"/><ref name="homeless"/>

At about 1:15 am on August 19, 1989, Mark MacPhail, an off-duty police officer who was working as a security guard at the Burger King, attempted to intervene in the pistol-whipping of Young at the parking lot.<ref name="smn050810"/> MacPhail was shot twice: once through the heart and once in the face. He did not draw his gun.<ref name="ajc111107"/><ref name="homeless"/><ref name="smn290891"/><ref name="smn010590"/> Bullets and shell casings which were determined to have come from a .38-caliber pistol were retrieved from the crime scene. Witnesses to the shooting agreed that a man in a white shirt had struck Young and then shot MacPhail.<ref name="ajc111107"/>

On August 19, Coles told Savannah Police he had seen Davis with a .38-caliber pistol, and that Davis had assaulted Young.<ref name="ajc111107"/><ref name="sep240889"/> The same evening, Davis drove to Atlanta with his sister.<ref name="ajc111107"/><ref name="sep240889"/> In the early morning of August 20, 1989, Savannah Police searched the Davis home and seized a pair of Davis's shorts, found in a clothes dryer and stained with blood.<ref name="smn101190"/><ref>{{cite news |last=Merrigan |first=JoAnn |title=Troy Davis makes his case to federal judge, claims he's innocent |url=http://www2.wsav.com/news/2010/jun/23/12/troy-davis-hearing-underway-ar-434202/ |access-date=December 26, 2012 |newspaper=WSAV-TV |date=June 23, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120218011555/http://www2.wsav.com/news/2010/jun/23/12/troy-davis-hearing-underway-ar-434202/ |archive-date=2012-02-18}}</ref> Davis's family began negotiating with police, motivated by concerns about his safety; local drug dealers were making death threats because the police dragnet seeking Davis had disrupted their business.<ref name="sep240889"/><ref name="smn250889"/> On August 23, 1989, Davis returned to Savannah, surrendered himself to police and was charged with MacPhail's murder.<ref name="sep240889"/>

===Background of Troy Davis=== Davis was the eldest child of Korean War veteran Joseph Davis and hospital worker Virginia Davis.<ref name="smn310891"/><ref name="smn240889"/> The couple divorced when Davis was very young,<ref name="smn240889"/> and Davis grew up with four siblings in the predominantly black, middle-class neighborhood of Cloverdale in Savannah, Georgia.<ref name="smn240889"/>

Davis attended Windsor Forest High School, where one teacher described him as a poor student.<ref name="smn240889"/> He dropped out in his junior year so he could drive his disabled younger sister to her rehabilitation.<ref name="smn310891"/> Davis obtained his high-school equivalency diploma from Richard Arnold Education Center in 1987. A teacher noted that he attended school regularly but seemed to lack discipline.<ref name="smn310891"/> Davis's nickname at the time was "Rah," or "Rough as Hell," but some neighbors reported that it did not reflect his behavior; they described him as a "straight-up fellow" who acted as a big brother to local children.<ref name="smn240889"/>

In July 1988, Davis pleaded guilty to carrying a concealed weapon; he was fined $250 as part of a plea agreement in which a charge of possession of a gun with altered serial numbers was dropped.<ref name="Officers link suspect to another shooting"/>

In August 1988, Davis began work as a drill technician at a plant that manufactured railroad crossing gates. His boss commented that while Davis was a likeable and good worker who appeared to have positive life goals, his job attendance was poor; by Christmas 1988, he had stopped coming to work.<ref name="smn310891"/> Davis returned to the job twice in the following months but neither time remained for long.<ref name="smn310891"/>

Davis was a coach in the Savannah Police Athletic League and had signed up for service in the United States Marine Corps.<ref name="Lowe"/>

===Background of Mark MacPhail=== Mark Allen MacPhail Sr., was 27 years old at the time of his murder. He was the son of a U.S. Army colonel, was married, and was father to a two-year-old daughter and an infant son. He had joined the Savannah Police Department in 1986 following six years of military service as an Army Ranger. MacPhail had worked for three years as a regular patrol officer and in the summer of 1989 had applied to train as a mounted police officer.<ref name="marks"/>

Hundreds of mourners, including county, state, and federal law enforcement officers, attended MacPhail's funeral at Trinity Lutheran Church in Savannah on August 22, 1989.<ref name="Hundreds mourn officer"/>

==Trial and conviction== ===Pre-trial proceedings=== On November 15, 1989, a grand jury indicted Davis for murder, assaulting Larry Young with a pistol, shooting Michael Cooper, obstructing MacPhail in performance of his duty and possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime.<ref name="sep161189"/> Davis pleaded not guilty in April 1990.<ref name=smn010590/>

In November 1990, the presiding judge excluded forensic evidence from the pair of shorts seized at the Davis home. The judge ruled that Davis's mother did "not freely and voluntarily grant the police the right to search her home."<ref name="smn101190"/> She had testified that police officers had threatened to break down her door unless she let them into her home. The Georgia Supreme Court upheld the exclusion of the evidence in May 1991, saying that the police should have obtained a search warrant.<ref name="sep161189"/>

Davis was brought to trial in August 1991.

===Prosecution case=== The prosecution claimed that Davis had shot Cooper in Cloverdale, then met up with Redd Coles at a pool hall, pistol-whipped the homeless man Larry Young in the parking lot, and then killed Mark MacPhail.<ref name="smn230891"/>

The prosecution called three eyewitnesses to the shooting of Cooper:

* Cooper testified that he was intoxicated at the time he was shot, and that although Davis was one of the people Cooper had quarrelled with, he "don't know me well enough to shoot me."<ref name="smn270891b"/> * Benjamin Gordon stated that the man who had shot Cooper had been wearing a white Batman T-shirt and blue shorts. On cross-examination Gordon admitted he had not seen the person who shot Cooper and stated that he did not know Davis.<ref name="smn270891b"/> * Daryl Collins made a statement to police on August 19, 1989, that he had seen Davis shoot at the car in which Cooper was travelling. However, on cross-examination at trial, Collins denied having seen Davis carrying or shooting a gun on the night in question. Collins, who was 16 at the time he made the initial statement, claimed police officers had told him he would be imprisoned if he refused to co-operate with the investigation.<ref name="smn270891b"/>

The prosecution called a number of eyewitnesses to MacPhail's murder:

* Antoine Williams testified that Davis, wearing a white shirt, had struck Young and then shot MacPhail.<ref name=smn270891b/><ref name="smn140891"/><ref name="smn260891"/><ref name="aireport2007"/> * Harriet Murray and Dorothy Ferrell testified that Davis, wearing a white shirt, had struck Young and shot MacPhail. They testified Davis shot MacPhail again after he fell to the ground wounded.<ref name="smn270891b"/><ref name="savannah08241991"/> * Coles testified that Davis, wearing a white shirt, had shot MacPhail. Coles admitted arguing with Young but claimed it was Davis who had hit him with a pistol.<ref name="ajc121107"/> On cross-examination, Coles admitted that he owned a .38-caliber pistol but testified he had given it to another man earlier on the night in question.<ref name="smn140891"/> * Air Force personnel Robert Grizzard, Steven Sanders, and Daniel Kinsman were also called by the prosecution. Sanders identified Davis as MacPhail's murderer. Grizzard and Kinsman stated they could not identify the gunman.<ref name="aireport2007"/> Kinsman also testified that the shooter was left-handed, but Davis was right-handed.<ref name="aireport2007"/> * Daryl Collins claimed in a police statement to have seen Davis approach MacPhail. However, as with the Cooper shooting claims (above), Collins retracted the statement on cross-examination.<ref name="smn270891b"/> * Larry Young identified Davis as the man who hit him and then shot MacPhail. He could not remember the attacker's physical appearance, but identified Davis by the clothes he was wearing on the night.<ref name="aireport2007"/>

Two witnesses to whom Davis was claimed to have confessed were called at trial:

* Jeffrey Sapp was a neighbor of the Davis family. He testified that Davis confessed to him soon after the murder.<ref name="ajc121107"/> * Kevin McQueen was an acquaintance of Davis who had been held at Chatham County Jail at the same time as Davis. McQueen claimed that Davis had admitted to being involved in the "exchange of gunfire" in which Cooper was shot and to have shot MacPhail because he was "paranoid...they'd seen him that night in Cloverdale."<ref name="smn270891a"/>

Another witness, Monty Holmes, had testified at a preliminary hearing that Davis admitted to shooting MacPhail. He fled a subpoena to testify at trial and was never called as a witness, but the judge allowed his earlier testimony to be read to the jury.<ref name="aireport2007"/>

In total, thirty five witnesses testified at trial for the prosecution.<ref name="gasd.uscourts.gov">{{Cite court |litigants = In re Troy Anthony Davis |vol = |reporter = |opinion = |pinpoint = |court = United States District Court for the Southern District of Georgia |date = August 24, 2010 |url = http://www.gasd.uscourts.gov/pdf/409cv00130_92part1.pdf |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20101226094713/http://www.gasd.uscourts.gov/pdf/409cv00130_92part1.pdf |url-status = dead }}</ref>

The prosecution did not produce a weapon (neither the gun which Davis was said to have used nor the gun owned by Coles) as evidence.<ref name="ajc121107"/> A ballistics expert testified that the .38-caliber bullet that killed MacPhail could have been fired from the same gun that wounded Cooper. He also stated that he was confident that .38 casings found at Cloverdale matched bullet casings found near the scene of MacPhail's shooting.<ref name="aireport2007"/><ref name="Troy Davis's attorneys file last-ditch court appeal"/><ref name="New Execution Date Set For Troy Anthony Davis Who Was Convicted Of 1989 Murder Of Savannah Police Officer Mark McPhail"/>

===Defense case=== Davis denied shooting Cooper and denied shooting MacPhail. Davis testified to having seen Coles assault Young, and Davis said that he had fled the scene before any shots were fired and, therefore, did not know who had shot MacPhail.<ref name="smn280891"/><ref name="smn150991"/>

Six witnesses, including Davis, testified at trial for the defense.<ref name="gasd.uscourts.gov"/> Davis's mother testified that Davis had been at home on August 19, 1989, until he left for Atlanta with his sister at about 9&nbsp;pm.<ref name=smn280891/>

===Verdict and sentencing=== On August 28, 1991, the jury took under two hours to find Davis guilty of murder, aggravated assault, possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony and obstruction of a law enforcement officer.<ref name="smn290891"/>

The prosecution sought the death penalty during sentencing proceedings for the murder conviction. Davis and three of his family members testified on Davis's behalf. In a final address to the jury, Davis pleaded, "Spare my life. Just give me a second chance. That's all I ask." He told jurors he was convicted for "offenses I didn't commit." MacPhail's family members and friends were not allowed to testify.<ref name="smn300891a"/><ref name="smn300891b"/> On August 30, 1991, after seven hours of deliberation, the jury rendered a death verdict and Davis was then sentenced to death by the judge.<ref name="smn310891"/>

==Appeals and challenges to conviction and sentence== ===First appellate proceedings=== Since the death penalty was imposed, both the conviction and sentence were automatically appealed to the Georgia Supreme Court.<ref name="smn021091"/> Davis and his lawyers requested a new trial, citing problems with the trial site and selection of the jury.<ref name="smn190292"/> The request was denied in March 1992.<ref name="Davis Conviction Upheld"/> In March 1993, the Georgia Supreme Court also upheld Davis's conviction and sentence, ruling that the judge had correctly refused to change trial site and that the racial composition of the jury did not deny his rights.<ref name="Georgia High Court Upholds Sentence"/><ref name="appeal of conviction"/> The U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal in November 1993.<ref name="Death Row Inmate Won't Get Appeal"/> Direct appeals having been exhausted, in March 1994 an order was signed for Davis's execution.<ref name="Convicted Killer's Execution Order Signed"/>

===First habeas corpus proceedings=== In 1994, Davis began habeas corpus proceedings, filing a petition in state court alleging that he had been wrongfully convicted and that his death sentence was a miscarriage of justice.<ref name="aireport2007"/> The following year, the federal funding of the Georgia Resource Center, which helped represent Davis, was cut by 70%, leading to the departures of most of the center's lawyers and investigators. According to a later affidavit by the executive director, the "work conducted on Mr. Davis's case was akin to triage... There were numerous witnesses that we knew should have been interviewed, but lacked the resources to do so."<ref name="Time 07-13-07"/> The appeal stated that the testimony of the prosecution witnesses had been coerced by law enforcement personnel. The petition was denied in September 1997, with the court ruling that claims of improper law enforcement approaches should have been raised earlier in the appeal process, and the court could not usurp the jury's role to evaluate the evidence offered during the trial.<ref name="state habeas 1997"/> The Georgia Supreme Court affirmed the denial of state habeas corpus relief on November 13, 2000.<ref name="state habeas"/>

In 2000 Davis challenged his conviction in state court. He alleged that the use of the electric chair during executions in Georgia constituted cruel and unusual punishment.<ref name="Georgia Court Hears Case Testing Use Of Electric Chair"/><ref name="dolpressrelease"/> By a 4–3 margin the Georgia Supreme Court rejected the challenge, stating once again that Davis should have raised the issue earlier in the appeal process.<ref name="Debate On Electric Chair Will Continue"/>

===Federal appeals=== In December 2001, Davis filed a habeas corpus petition in the United States District Court.<ref name="dolpressrelease"/> From 1996 onwards, seven of the nine principal prosecution eyewitnesses changed all or part of their trial testimony.<ref name="The Long Road To The Davis Case - CBS News"/><ref name="guardian290609"/> Dorothy Ferrell, for example, stated in a 2000 affidavit that she felt under pressure from police to identify Davis as the shooter because she was on parole for a shoplifting conviction.<ref name="guardian290609"/> In a 2002 affidavit, Darrell Collins wrote that the police had scared him into falsely testifying by threatening to charge him as an accessory to the crime, and alleged that he had not seen Davis do anything to Young.<ref name="wp160707"/> Antoine Williams, Larry Young and Monty Holmes also stated in affidavits that their earlier testimony implicating Davis had been coerced by strong-arm police tactics.<ref name="aireport2007"/> In addition, three witnesses signed affidavits stating that Red Coles had confessed to the murder to them.<ref name="ajc121107"/> The only witnesses aside from Coles to identify Davis as the shooter who did not recant were Steven Sanders and Harriet Murray. Davis's lawyers argued that Sanders's statement was unreliable, as he had previously stated that he could not identify the shooter, and that Murray's description of the shooter resembled Coles more than Davis.<ref name="aireport2007"/>

The State of Georgia argued that the evidence had been procedurally defaulted since it should have been introduced earlier. Davis's petition was denied in May 2004; the judge stated in an opinion that the "submitted affidavits are insufficient to raise doubts as to the constitutionality of the result at trial, there is no danger of a miscarriage of justice in declining to consider the claim."<ref name="dolpressrelease"/> He also rejected other defense contentions about unfair jury selection, ineffective defense counsel and prosecutorial misconduct. The decision was appealed to the 11th Circuit Court, which heard oral arguments in the case in September 2005. On September 26, 2006, the court affirmed the denial of federal habeas corpus relief, and determined that Davis had not made "a substantive claim of actual innocence"<ref name="dolpressrelease"/> or shown that his trial was constitutionally unfair; the circuit court found that neither prosecutors nor defense counsel had acted improperly or incompetently at trial.<ref name="11th circuit 1"/><ref name="eckenrode"/> A petition for panel rehearing was denied in December 2006.<ref name="dolpressrelease"/>

Legal experts argued that a major obstacle to granting Davis a new trial was the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996, passed after the Oklahoma City bombing, which bars death row inmates from later presenting evidence they could have presented at trial.<ref name="SS1"/> Members of the legal community have criticized the restricting effect of the 1996 Act on the ability of wrongfully convicted persons to prove their innocence.<ref name="Time 07-13-07"/><ref name="wp160707"/>

===First execution date=== On June 25, 2007, Davis's first certiorari petition to the U.S. Supreme Court was denied,<ref name=dolpressrelease/><ref name="certiorari 1"/> and his execution was then set for July 17, 2007.<ref name="Time 07-13-07"/>

Davis's case gained increasing public exposure and support from organizations and prominent individuals. Nobel Peace Prize winner Archbishop Desmond Tutu urged the courts to agree to hear the evidence of police coercion and recanted testimony.<ref name="tutu"/><ref name=tvnz/> An appeal to Governor of Georgia Sonny Perdue urging him to spare Davis's life was sent on behalf of Pope Benedict XVI.<ref name="Pope makes plea to spare life of Troy Davis"/> Similar appeals were sent by singer Harry Belafonte,<ref name="belafonte"/> Sister Helen Prejean, author of ''Dead Man Walking'',<ref name="prejean"/> and actor Mike Farrell.<ref name="Pope's message for Perdue: Don't execute killer"/> Amnesty International published a report about Davis's case characterizing it as a miscarriage of justice and a "catastrophic flaw in the U.S. death penalty machine."<ref name="amnesty pr 06-25-2007"/> The human rights group initiated a letter-writing campaign and delivered 4,000 letters to the clemency board.<ref name="Clemency board receives letters supporting Davis"/> William S. Sessions, former FBI Director and federal judge, called on authorities to halt the execution process, writing that "[i]t would be intolerable to execute a man without his claims of innocence ever being considered by the courts or by the executive".<ref name="tvnz"/> Politicians and others such as Jesse Jackson Jr. and Sheila Jackson Lee, and former Texas District Attorney Sam D. Millsap Jr., and the organization Murder Victims Families for Reconciliation requested that the courts grant Davis a new trial.<ref name="amnesty pr 07-10-07"/> U.S. Congressman John Lewis spoke to the Georgia State Board of Pardons and Paroles, suggesting that Coles—one of the witnesses who had not recanted—was the real killer.<ref name="Lewis"/> Representatives from the Council of Europe and European Parliament also spoke out on Davis's case, asking U.S. authorities to halt the planned execution and calling for a new trial.<ref name="carrier"/>

On July 16, 2007, the Georgia State Board of Pardons and Paroles granted a ninety-day stay of execution in order to allow the evaluation of evidence presented, including the doubts about Davis's guilt.<ref name="Davis wins 90-day stay of execution"/><ref name="Stay of Execution for Georgia Man"/> The stay was superseded by the August 2007 decision of the Georgia Supreme Court to grant Davis's application for discretionary appeal from the denial of his Extraordinary Motion for a New Trial.<ref name="Parole board bows out of Davis clemency bid"/> Defense lawyers requested a new trial based on statements of mistaken identity.<ref name="Death Row Inmate Looks For New Trial"/> On March 17, 2008, the Georgia Supreme Court denied the appeal by a 4–3 majority. The majority wrote that the recanting witnesses "have merely stated they now do not feel able to identify the shooter", that the trial testimony could not be ignored, and that they "in fact, favor[ed] that original testimony over the new."<ref name="SCGA"/><ref name="ajc170308"/> In dissent, the Chief Justice wrote that "if recantation testimony, either alone or supported by other evidence, shows convincingly that prior trial testimony was false, it simply defies all logic and morality to hold that it must be disregarded categorically".<ref name="ajc170308"/>

===Second execution date=== In July 2008, Davis's lawyers filed a petition for a writ of certiorari in the U.S. Supreme Court, seeking review of the Georgia Supreme Court decision and arguing that the Eighth Amendment creates a substantive right of the innocent not to be executed.<ref name="cert petition"/><ref name="nyt151008"/> However, an execution date was scheduled for September 23, 2008, before the United States Supreme Court decided whether to take up Davis's case.<ref name="Execution set for Davis in killing of policeman"/> The Georgia Supreme Court refused to grant a stay of execution and the Board of Pardons and Paroles denied clemency.<ref name="smn 09-13-08"/><ref name="ajc220908"/> Demonstration in support of Troy Davis, Paris, July 2008|thumb|left Amnesty International condemned the decision to deny clemency,<ref name="amnesty pr clemency"/> and former president (and Georgia governor) Jimmy Carter released a public letter in which he stated "Executing Troy Davis without a real examination of potentially exonerating evidence risks taking the life of an innocent man and would be a grave miscarriage of justice."<ref name="carter pr"/><ref name="Death row inmate's life awaits ruling"/> Reverend Al Sharpton also called for clemency after he met and prayed with Davis on death row.<ref name="Sharpton seeks clemency for Troy Anthony Davis"/> A stay of execution was also supported by the NAACP; the president of the Georgia state conference said "This is a modern-day lynching if it's allowed to go forward."<ref name=ajc220908/> Former Republican Congressman and Libertarian presidential candidate Bob Barr wrote that he is "a strong believer in the death penalty as an appropriate and just punishment," but that the proper level of fairness and accuracy required for the ultimate punishment has not been met in Davis's case.<ref name="Barr, Carter both seek clemency for Troy Davis"/>

A last-minute emergency stay, issued by the Supreme Court less than two hours before Davis was scheduled to be put to death, halted the execution.<ref name="amnesty pr 9-24-08"/><ref name="US Supreme Court Awards Convicted Murderer Troy Davis Late Stay Of Execution In Jackson, Georgia"/> Lawyers for Davis argued that lower courts had failed to permit a hearing to carefully examine the recanted testimony and four witnesses who implicated Coles. Lawyers for the Georgia attorney general's office argued that most of the affidavits had already been presented and reviewed, and that questions about the quality and credibility of the witnesses were raised at the initial trial.<ref name="Court declines to hear death-row appeal"/>

On October 14, 2008, the Supreme Court declined to hear Davis's petition,<ref name=nyt151008/><ref name="Docket for 08-66"/> and a new execution date was set for October 27, 2008.<ref name="wtoc270809"/>

===Third execution date=== On October 21, 2008, Davis's lawyers requested an emergency stay of the pending execution, and three days later the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals issued a stay of execution to consider a newly filed federal habeas petition.<ref name="ajc241008"/><ref name="ajc231008"/> Davis's supporters continued their appeals and actions; these included rallies held worldwide,<ref name="Rallies protest impending execution of Troy Davis"/> a petition with 140,000 signatures presented to the state Board of Pardons and Paroles,<ref name=ajc241008/> and an appeal from the European Union calling for the death sentence to be commuted.<ref name = "ajc231008"/> In contrast, the Chatham County prosecutors asserted that Davis was guilty and deserved the death penalty.<ref name=ajc241008/> [[File:NLN M1 Dead Prez.jpg|Rapper M-1 speaks at a rally held in 2009 in New York City in support of Troy Davis.|thumb|right]] Oral arguments were heard by a three-judge panel on December 9 in Atlanta. Davis's lawyers again argued that exculpatory affidavits proving Davis's innocence had not been examined in a court of law; they noted the witnesses who had implicated Coles, and that his photo was not included among those shown to witnesses in the case.<ref name="ajc 12-10-08"/><ref name="smn101208"/> The Senior Assistant Attorney General argued that, in extraordinary cases, evidence of wrongful conviction could be heard at this stage of the appeals process, but that in this case the recantation evidence was untrustworthy, and are generally regarded with the "highest suspicion."<ref name = "ajc 12-10-08"/> Multiple courts and boards had also previously declined appeals.<ref name="ajc 12-10-08"/> During the hearing, judge Joel F. Dubina commented: "As bad as it would be to execute an innocent man, it's also possible the real guilty person who shot Officer MacPhail is not being prosecuted."<ref name="ajc 12-10-08"/> Another judge, Stanley Marcus, noted that two of the witnesses had not changed their recollections,<ref name=smn101208/> and that no DNA evidence was available to categorically clear Davis.<ref name="ajc 12-10-08"/> After the hearing, Davis's sister, Martina Correia, an active campaigner for her brother stated "This is not family against family. We have no ill will against the MacPhail family. When justice is found for Troy, there will be justice for Officer MacPhail."<ref name="APN 12-09-08"/>

On April 16, 2009, the panel denied Davis's application by a 2–1 majority. Judges Dubina and Marcus rejected the petition, stating that Davis's claims having been reviewed and rejected in the past, and that the recantations were not persuasive.<ref name="smn17042008"/><ref name="11th circuit opinion 2"/> Judge Rosemary Barkett, in dissent, expressed her belief that as Davis might prove his innocence, it would be wrong to execute him.<ref name="smn17042008"/> In an interview, Mark MacPhail Jr. said of his father, "He gave his life for the community and now I'm trying to help out his name and help him in some way." Of the appeals process, he says, "The past two years we've had countless appeals and it just keeps on getting drug out." Of Davis, MacPhail said, "He decided to break the law. And our law says, you kill an officer of the law, who tries to uphold it, you must be punished."<ref name="MacPhail's son speaks on Davis appeal denial"/> The 11th Circuit issued an order extending the stay of execution for 30 days to allow Davis the opportunity to file a habeas corpus petition with the U.S. Supreme Court.<ref name="smn17042008"/> Davis filed a petition for habeas corpus with the U.S. Supreme Court on May 19, 2009.<ref name="wsav"/>

On August 17, 2009, the Supreme Court ordered the Savannah federal district court to "receive testimony and make findings of fact as to whether evidence that could not have been obtained at the time of trial clearly establishes [Davis's] innocence."<ref name="SupCtNo08-1443"/><ref name="csm240810"/> Justice John Paul Stevens, joined by Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Stephen Breyer, wrote that "[t]he substantial risk of putting an innocent man to death clearly provides an adequate justification for holding an evidentiary hearing." Justice Antonin Scalia dissented, stating that a new hearing would be "a fool's errand" because Davis's claim of innocence was "a sure loser". He was joined by Justice Clarence Thomas.<ref name="ajc23062010"/>

===Federal hearing=== In response to the Supreme Court order, a two-day hearing was held in June 2010 in a federal district court in Savannah in front of Judge William Moore.<ref name=ajc23062010/><ref name="ajc24062010"/> Former prosecution witness Antoine Williams stated he did not know who had shot MacPhail, and that because he was illiterate he could not read the police statements he had signed in 1989.<ref name=smn240610/> Other prosecution witnesses Jeffrey Sapp and Kevin McQueen testified that Davis had not confessed to them as they had stated at the initial trial.<ref name="ajc23062010b"/> Darrell Collins also recanted his previous evidence that he had seen Davis shoot Cooper and MacPhail.<ref name=smn240610/> The witnesses variously described their previous testimony against Davis as being the result of feeling scared, of feeling frightened and pressured by police or to get revenge in a conflict with Davis.<ref name="smn240610"/><ref name="ajc23062010b"/> Anthony Hargrove testified that Redd Coles had admitted the killing to him. The state's lawyers described Hargrove's testimony as hearsay evidence; Judge William T. Moore permitted the evidence but stated that unless Coles appeared, he might give the evidence "no weight whatsoever."<ref name="smn240610"/><ref name="ajc23062010b"/> Another witness making a similar statement was heard, but a third was rejected by Judge Moore as the claims were inadmissible hearsay because Coles was not called as a witness and given the opportunity for rebuttal.<ref name=ajc24062010/><ref name=smn220710/> Moore criticized the decision not to call Coles, saying that he was "one of the most critical witnesses to Davis's defense". One of Davis's lawyers stated that the day before they had been unsuccessful in serving a subpoena on Coles; Moore responded that the attempt had been made too late, given that the hearing date had been set months in advance.<ref name="ajc24062010"/>

State attorneys called current and former police officers and the two lead prosecutors, who testified that the investigation had been careful, and that no witnesses had been coerced or threatened.<ref name=ajc24062010/> The lead detective testified that his investigation was "very meticulous and careful… I was in no rush just to pick the first guy we got our hands on. I wanted the right guy."<ref name=ajc23062010b/> He stated that witnesses gave "strikingly similar descriptions on how the shooter was dressed", mostly describing the shooter as wearing a white T-shirt and dark pants, which other witnesses said Davis was wearing that evening.<ref name="ajc23062010b"/> A state attorney asserted that the testimony of at least five prosecution witnesses remained unchallenged, and the evidence of Davis's guilt was overwhelming.<ref name=ajc24062010/> In July 2010, Davis's lawyers filed a motion asking Moore to reconsider his decision to exclude testimony from a witness to a confession by Coles,<ref name="smn220710"/> but in August 2010, Moore stood by his initial decision, stating that in not calling Coles, Davis's lawyers were seeking to implicate Coles without desiring his rebuttal.<ref name="Judge stands by decision to exclude testimony in Troy Davis case"/>

Moore ruled that executing an innocent person would violate the Eighth Amendment. "However, Mr. Davis is not innocent."<ref name =csm240810/> In his decision, Moore wrote: "while Mr. Davis's new evidence casts some additional, minimal doubt on his conviction, it is largely smoke and mirrors."<ref name="SS1"/><ref name="csm240810"/> Of the seven papers described as recantations by the defense, Moore found that only one was wholly credible and two were partly credible.<ref name=csm240810/><ref name=ajc240810/> He did not consider Coles' alleged confessions because of the failure of Davis's lawyers to subpoena Coles, and suggested that Davis should appeal directly to the Supreme Court.<ref name="ajc240810"/> In November 2010, the federal appeals panel dismissed an appeal on the case, without ruling on its merits. They stated that Davis should appeal the case directly to the U.S. Supreme Court "because he had exhausted his other avenues of relief."<ref name="Appeal dismissed for death row inmate Troy Davis"/> Rosemary Barkett, one of the panel judges, later released a statement saying that although she agreed with the decision, she still believed that Davis should be given a new trial.<ref name="US court denies latest appeal by death row inmate"/>

===Renewed U.S. Supreme Court petition=== [[File:Troy Davis Execution Protest 2011 Shankbone.JPG|thumb|upright|A man protesting the September 21 execution date at the September 17 Occupy Wall Street rally]] In January 2011, Davis's legal team filed a new petition with the United States Supreme Court, alleging that District Judge Moore had "evinced a clear hostility" against Davis during the August 2010 hearing, and again asking for a new trial.<ref name="Troy Davis files new appeal with U.S. Supreme Court"/> The petition was rejected without comment by the Supreme Court in March 2011, allowing a new execution date.<ref name="liptak"/><ref name="Supreme Court declines case of death-row inmate who became cause célèbre"/>

In May 2011, Amnesty International and People of Faith Against the Death Penalty asked religious leaders to sign a petition to the Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles calling for the commutation of Davis's death sentence. By September 17, 2011, over 660,000 people<ref name="More than 600,000 sign petition against planned execution of Troy Davis"/> had signed the petition for clemency including Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Pope Benedict XVI, Archbishop Wilton Gregory, William Sessions (former head of the Federal Bureau of Investigation), former President Jimmy Carter and representatives for the European Parliament.<ref name="Reps. John Lewis and Hank Johnson Urge Clemency For Inmate Troy Anthony Davis"/>

In contrast, law enforcement officials such as Spencer Lawton, the former Chatham County prosecutor who put Davis on trial, remained convinced of the evidence for Davis's guilt and that Davis's supporters "would know differently if they looked at the record."<ref name="Prosecutor says he has no doubt about Troy Davis's guilt"/> He stated: "We have consistently won the case as it has been presented in court. We have consistently lost the case as it has been presented in the public realm, on TV and elsewhere."<ref name="Prosecutor says he has no doubt about Troy Davis's guilt"/> Members of MacPhail's family were also convinced of Davis's guilt, and thought his execution would bring a measure of peace.<ref name="bg">{{cite news|url= http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2011/09/17/georgia_death_case_grieves_families_on_both_sides|title=Georgia death case grieves families on both sides |author1=Russ Bynum |author2=Greg Bluestein |work=The Boston Globe|date=September 17, 2011|location=Boston|issn=0743-1791|access-date=September 23, 2011}}{{dead link|date=May 2026|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref><ref name=fox/> His mother reported "That hole in my heart will be there until the day I die, but it [the execution] may give me some peace and quiet."<ref name="fox">{{cite news|url=http://www.myfoxatlanta.com/dpp/news/local_news/Victim%27s-Mother-Talks-About-Troy-Davis-Execution-20110915-pm-pk|title=Victim's Mother Talks About Troy Davis Execution|first=Darryl|last=Carver|work=Fox Atlanta|date=September 15, 2011|access-date=September 23, 2011}}</ref> Mark MacPhail Jr. stated "It's not animosity or anger or rage that has kept us going; that's not what my father would want. It's justice. The law is what he was all about. That's what we have to uphold."<ref name="SN1">{{cite web|url= http://savannahnow.com/column/2011-09-19/van-brimmer-macphail-family-readies-next-act-painful-tragedy#.TnyXL9S-WpA|title=Van Brimmer: MacPhail family readies for next act in painful tragedy &#124; savannahnow.com|first=Adam|last=Van Brimmer|work=Savannah Morning News|date=September 19, 2011|access-date=September 23, 2011}}</ref>

==Execution== thumb|left| September 25, 2011 in France, after the execution of Troy Davis. On September 7, 2011, Georgia set Davis's execution date for two weeks later, September 21.<ref name="Georgia sets Sept. 21 execution for Troy Davis"/> The Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles set a hearing for Davis's second bid for clemency for September 19. This Board had not granted him clemency in September 2008, but the five-member Board now included three new members who had not previously heard the case.<ref name="Troy Anthony Davis's execution set for Sept. 21"/><ref name="Parole board to again hear Troy Anthony Davis case"/> On September 20, the Board denied him clemency.<ref name="Board denies clemency for Troy Davis"/>

On the morning of September 21, the Butts County Superior Court denied Davis's request to halt his execution. The Georgia Supreme Court also denied his appeal. Davis was due to be executed at 7&nbsp;p.m. EDT.<ref name="Ga high court rejects plea to stop Davis execution"/> The same night, Jay Carney, the White House Press Secretary, announced that President Obama would not intervene in the case (while the president could not have pardoned Davis, he did have the authority to order a federal investigation that might have led to a delay in the execution).<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rawstory.com/2011/09/obama-wont-act-in-troy-davis-execution-case/|title=Obama won't act in Troy Davis execution case|date=September 21, 2011|access-date=October 18, 2011|agency=Agence France-Presse|website=The Raw Story|archive-date=March 4, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140304100609/http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2011/09/21/obama-wont-act-in-troy-davis-execution-case/|url-status=live}}</ref> Davis filed a request with the U.S. Supreme Court to stay his execution. Almost an hour after Davis's scheduled execution time, the Supreme Court announced they would review his petition, thereby postponing the execution.<ref name="Last-Ditch Appeals Stalls Georgia Execution"/> The Supreme Court, however, denied Davis's petition, after deliberating for several hours.<ref name="Troy Davis Execution Stay Denied"/>

The execution by lethal injection began at 10:53&nbsp;p.m. EDT.<ref name="Georgia executes Troy Davis after his last pleas fail"/> In his final words, Davis maintained his innocence, saying:<ref name="Troy Davis maintains innocence in final words"/><blockquote>Well, first of all I'd like to address the MacPhail family. I'd like to let you all know, despite the situation—I know all of you are still convinced that I'm the person that killed your father, your son and your brother, but I am innocent. The incident that happened that night was not my fault. I did not have a gun that night. I did not shoot your family member. But I am so sorry for your loss. I really am—sincerely. All I can ask is that each of you look deeper into this case, so that you really will finally see the truth. I ask my family and friends that you all continue to pray, that you all continue to forgive. Continue to fight this fight. For those about to take my life, may God have mercy on all of your souls. God bless you all.<ref>{{cite web |title=Troy Davis' Last Words Released by Georgia Department of Corrections (AUDIO)|date=October 7, 2011|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/10/07/troy-davis-execution-last-words_n_1000648.html|access-date=October 18, 2011|author=Huffington Post|website=HuffPost}}</ref></blockquote> He was declared dead at 11:08&nbsp;pm EDT.<ref name="Troy Davis Executed After Stay Denied"/>

Twitter recorded 7,671 tweets per second in the moments before word of Davis's execution, making his death the second-most-active Twitter event in 2011.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://techcrunch.com/2011/12/06/top-spiking-tweets-2011/ |title=The Top Spiking Tweets Of 2011 |access-date=July 2, 2012 |last=Schonfeld |first=Erick |date=December 6, 2011 |publisher=AOL Inc}}</ref>

His funeral was attended by more than 1,000 people in Savannah, Georgia, on October 1, 2011.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/story/2011-10-01/Troy-Davis-funeral/50626638/1|title=Large funeral for executed Georgia inmate Troy Davis|newspaper=USA Today|agency=AP|date=October 1, 2011|access-date=October 1, 2011}}</ref>

==In popular culture== * The second episode of the second season of ''The Newsroom'' included substantial discussion of the Troy Davis case, with the character Don Keefer (Thomas Sadoski) wanting to use their network's platform to advocate for Davis's clemency. * On the second anniversary of Davis's execution, Haymarket Books released ''I Am Troy Davis'', a book co-authored by human rights activist Jen Marlowe, and Davis's sister, Martina Davis-Correia, with the participation of Troy Davis himself.<ref>{{cite book|url=http://www.haymarketbooks.org/pb/I-Am-Troy-Davis |title=I am Troy Davis|publisher= Haymarket Books |access-date=February 17, 2015}}</ref> * On the fourth anniversary of Davis's execution, Gautam Narula<ref>{{cite web|url=http://gautamnarula.com/|title=Gautam Narula -|website=Gautam Narula}}</ref> released ''Remain Free'',<ref>{{cite web|url=http://remainfree.com/|title=Remain Free|website=Remain Free}}</ref> a memoir about his close friendship with Davis featuring hundreds of recorded conversations that took place during Davis's final three years on death row. The book won the 2016 Georgia Author of the Year Award.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://remainfree.com/about-the-book/|title=About the Book|date=March 11, 2016|access-date=September 21, 2017}}</ref> Narula recorded a 12-minute spoken version of his story called "Coming of Age on Death Row"<ref>{{cite web |title=Coming of Age on Death Row |url=https://themoth.org/stories/coming-of-age-on-death-row |website=The Moth |access-date=2 July 2022}}</ref> which was broadcast on ''The Moth Radio Hour'' on June 26, 2018. * 'Beyond Reasonable Doubt: The Troy Davis Project',<ref name="synchrotheatre.com">{{cite web|url=http://www.synchrotheatre.com/season/beyond-reasonable-doubt|title=Synchronicity: Smart. Gutsy. Bold. Theatre.|website=www.synchrotheatre.com|access-date=April 26, 2016|archive-date=April 21, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160421215645/http://synchrotheatre.com/season/beyond-reasonable-doubt|url-status=dead}}</ref> a play written by Lee Nowell,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://leenowellplaywright.com/|title=Lee Nowell - Playwright|website=leenowellplaywright.com}}</ref> premiered at Synchronicity Theatre<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.synchrotheatre.com/|title=Synchronicity: Smart. Gutsy. Bold. Theatre.|website=www.synchrotheatre.com}}</ref> in Atlanta, GA on April 8, 2016.<ref name="synchrotheatre.com"/> *Talib Kweli in his 2013 release "It Only Gets Better", off his album ''Prisoner of Conscious'' shouts R.I.P. Troy Davis. *Hip hop band Flobots mentions Davis in their song "Sides": "Five for the name on the grave, Troy Davis". *Hip hop band Public Enemy names Davis in their song "I Shall Not Be Moved" on their 2012 album ''Most of My Heroes Still Don't Appear on No Stamp''. *Rapper Kinetics, in his song "I Am a Computer", raps "Every verse poorly executed, Troy Davis".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://genius.com/Kinetics-i-am-a-computer-lyrics|title=Kinetics I Am a Computer}}</ref> *Dutch Rock band Paceshifters has a song "Davis" on their album "Home". *Boston rock band State Radio released their song, "State of Georgia", about Davis on their album ''Rabbit Inn Rebellion''.<ref>{{Citation|title=State Radio – State of Georgia|url=https://genius.com/State-radio-state-of-georgia-lyrics|language=en|access-date=2019-10-04}}</ref> *Chinoye Chukwu was inspired by Davis to write the screenplay for ''Clemency''. In the film, the character Anthony Woods makes a statement similar to the final words Davis gave at his execution.

==See also== {{Portal bar|Biography|State of Georgia|Law}} * List of people executed in Georgia (U.S. state) * List of people executed in the United States in 2011

==References== {{reflist|3|refs=

<ref name = "11th circuit 1">{{cite court|litigants=Davis v. Terry|vol=465 F.3d|reporter=F.3d|opinion=1249 |pinpoint=|court=11th Circuit|year=2006|url=http://www.ca11.uscourts.gov/opinions/ops/200413371.pdf|format=PDF}}</ref>

<ref name="11th circuit opinion 2">{{Cite news |url=http://www.ca11.uscourts.gov/opinions/ops/200816009ord.pdf |title=In re Troy Davis, Application for Leave to File a Second or Successive Habeas Corpus Petition |publisher=11th Circuit |date=April 16, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090824045809/http://www.ca11.uscourts.gov/opinions/ops/200816009ord.pdf |archive-date=August 24, 2009 |df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="APN 12-09-08">{{Cite news |url=http://www.atlantaprogressivenews.com/news/0411.html |title=Troy Davis Makes Case for New Round of Appeals |author=Springston, Jonathan |date=December 9, 2008 |publisher=Atlanta Progressive News |access-date=December 11, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130117140413/http://www.atlantaprogressivenews.com/news/0411.html |archive-date=January 17, 2013 |df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name = "ajc 12-10-08">{{cite news|url=http://www.ajc.com/services/content/printedition/2008/12/10/davis.html|title=Judges differ as Davis seeks new trial|date=December 10, 2008|newspaper=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution|access-date=December 10, 2008|archive-date=June 29, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110629054530/http://www.ajc.com/services/content/printedition/2008/12/10/davis.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>

<ref name = "ajc231008">{{Cite news| url=http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/printedition/2008/10/23/davis.html?cxntlid=inform_artr|title=Lawyers launch new appeals effort|date = October 23, 2008|author=Rankin, Bill|access-date=December 8, 2008}}</ref>

<ref name="amnesty pr 07-10-07">{{cite web|url=http://www.amnestyusa.org/document.php?lang=e&id=ENGUSA20070710001|title=Religious Leaders, Members of Congress, Entertainers, Civil Rights Leaders Lead Worldwide Clemency Call for Troy Davis|publisher=Amnesty International|date=July 10, 2007|access-date=December 10, 2008|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081130181605/http://www.amnestyusa.org/document.php?lang=e&id=ENGUSA20070710001|archive-date=November 30, 2008|df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name = "amnesty pr 9-24-08">{{Cite news|url=https://www.amnesty.org/en/news-and-updates/news/stay-execution-troy-davis-20080924|title=Stay of Execution for Troy Davis|date=September 24, 2008|publisher=Amnesty International|access-date=December 9, 2008}}</ref>

<ref name = "appeal of conviction">{{cite court|litigants=Davis v. State|vol=426|reporter=S.E.2d|opinion=844|pinpoint= |court= Georgia Supreme Court|year=1993|url=}}</ref>

<ref name = "carter pr">{{cite press release| title = Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter Calls for Clemency for Troy Davis | publisher=Carter Center| date = September 19, 2008| url = http://www.cartercenter.org/news/pr/clemency_troy_davis.html| access-date = December 8, 2008}}</ref>

<ref name = "cert petition">{{cite web|url=http://www.scotusblog.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2008/09/08-66_pet.pdf|title=Petition for A Writ of Certiorari|date=July 14, 2008|publisher=SCOTUS blog|access-date=December 10, 2008}}</ref>

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<ref name="smn 09-13-08">{{cite news|url=http://savannahnow.com/node/572449|title=Troy Davis's clemency bid fails|newspaper=Savannah Morning News|date=September 13, 2008|access-date=December 10, 2008|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130201191741/http://savannahnow.com/node/572449|archive-date=February 1, 2013|df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name = "state habeas 1997">{{cite court|litigants=Davis v. Turpin |vol= |reporter=Civ. Action No. 94-V-162|opinion=|pinpoint=|court=|year=1997|url=}}</ref>

<ref name = "state habeas">{{cite court|litigants=Davis v. Turpin |vol=539 |reporter=S.E.2d|opinion=129|pinpoint=|court=Georgia Supreme Court|year=2000|url=}}</ref>

<ref name="Appeal dismissed for death row inmate Troy Davis">{{Cite news |url=http://www.ajc.com/news/appeal-dismissed-for-death-726254.html |title=Appeal dismissed for death row inmate Troy Davis |newspaper=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution |date=November 6, 2010 |access-date=November 6, 2010 |archive-date=November 10, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101110053613/http://www.ajc.com/news/appeal-dismissed-for-death-726254.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>

<ref name="Barr, Carter both seek clemency for Troy Davis">{{cite web|url=http://www.wtvm.com/Global/story.asp?S=9040619|title=Barr, Carter both seek clemency for Troy Davis|agency=Associated Press|publisher=WTVM|date=September 19, 2008|access-date=September 19, 2008}} {{dead link|date=October 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes}}</ref>

<ref name="Board denies clemency for Troy Davis">{{cite web |url=http://www.wsbtv.com/news/29240817/detail.html |title=Board denies clemency for Troy Davis |work=WSBTV.com |date=September 20, 2011 |access-date=September 20, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110923202258/http://www.wsbtv.com/news/29240817/detail.html |archive-date=September 23, 2011 |df=mdy-all}}</ref>

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<ref name="Convicted Killer's Execution Order Signed">{{Cite news|last=Lackley|first=Mark|title=Convicted Killer's Execution Order Signed|url=http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1994/03041994EXECUTIONORDERSIGNED.pdf|newspaper=Savannah Morning News|date=March 4, 1994|access-date=August 14, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110922152104/http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1994/03041994EXECUTIONORDERSIGNED.pdf|archive-date=September 22, 2011|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="Court declines to hear death-row appeal">{{Cite news|url=https://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Justice/2008/1015/p03s02-usju.html |title=Court declines to hear death-row appeal|newspaper=The Christian Science Monitor|author=Richey, Warren|date= October 15, 2008 |access-date=August 18, 2010}}</ref>

<ref name="Davis Conviction Upheld">{{Cite news|last=Skutch|first=Jan|title=Davis Conviction Upheld|url=http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1992/03211992CONVICTIONUPHELD.pdf|newspaper=Savannah Morning News|date=March 21, 1992|access-date=August 14, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110922152040/http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1992/03211992CONVICTIONUPHELD.pdf|archive-date=September 22, 2011|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="Davis executed">{{cite web|title=Davis executed|work=Yahoo News |url=https://news.yahoo.com/ga-executes-davis-supporters-claim-injustice-031409578.html|publisher=Yahoo}}</ref>

<ref name="Davis wins 90-day stay of execution">{{cite news|url=http://savannahnow.com/node/327145|title=Davis wins 90-day stay of execution|first=Jan|last=Skutch|newspaper=Savannah Morning News|date=July 17, 2007|access-date=July 17, 2007|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070819153242/http://savannahnow.com/node/327145|archive-date=August 19, 2007|df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="Death Row Inmate Looks For New Trial">{{Cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=eGgWAAAAIBAJ&pg=6827,4508030&dq=troy+davis+georgia+supreme+court&hl=en |title=Death Row Inmate Looks For New Trial|newspaper=Star-News|author=Bluestein, Greg|access-date=August 16, 2010}}</ref>

<ref name="Death Row Inmate Won't Get Appeal">{{Cite news|title=Death Row Inmate Won't Get Appeal|url=http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1993/11021993NoAppeal.pdf|newspaper=Savannah Morning News|date=November 2, 1993|access-date=August 14, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110922152054/http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1993/11021993NoAppeal.pdf|archive-date=September 22, 2011|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="Death row inmate's life awaits ruling">{{Cite news|url=http://news.smh.com.au/world/death-row-inmates-life-awaits-ruling-20081007-4v7h.html |title=Death row inmate's life awaits ruling |newspaper=The Sydney Morning Herald|date= October 7, 2008|access-date=August 18, 2010}}</ref>

<ref name="Debate On Electric Chair Will Continue">{{Cite news|last=Rankin|first=Bill|title= Debate On Electric Chair Will Continue |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=VSAfAAAAIBAJ&pg=4392,3089305|newspaper=Tuscaloosa News|date=November 14, 2000}}</ref>

<ref name="Docket for 08-66">{{cite web|url={{SCOTUS URL Docket|08-66}}|title=Docket for 08-66|date=October 14, 2008|publisher=US Supreme Court|access-date=December 10, 2008}}</ref>

<ref name="Execution set for Davis in killing of policeman">{{Cite news |url=http://savannahnow.com/intown/2008-09-03/execution-set-davis-killing-policeman |title=Execution set for Davis in killing of policeman |author=Skutch, Jan |date=September 3, 2008 |newspaper=Savannah Morning News |access-date=August 18, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120120112322/http://savannahnow.com/intown/2008-09-03/execution-set-davis-killing-policeman |archive-date=January 20, 2012 |df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="Ga high court rejects plea to stop Davis execution">{{cite news|url=https://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2011/09/21/general-us-georgia-execution_8693344.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110924074959/http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2011/09/21/general-us-georgia-execution_8693344.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=September 24, 2011|title=Ga high court rejects plea to stop Davis execution|last=Bluestein|first=Greg|date=September 21, 2011|work=AP via Forbes|access-date=September 21, 2011}}</ref>

<ref name="Georgia Board Denies Clemency for Troy Davis">{{cite news|url=https://www.foxnews.com/us/georgia-board-denies-clemency-for-convicted-cop-killer-troy-davis |title=Georgia Board Denies Clemency for Troy Davis |publisher=Fox News |date=September 20, 2011 |access-date=September 20, 2011}}</ref>

<ref name="Georgia Court Hears Case Testing Use Of Electric Chair">{{Cite news|last=Pettys|first=Dick|title=Georgia Court Hears Case Testing Use Of Electric Chair |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=X0ogAAAAIBAJ&pg=6849,3378990|newspaper=Tuscaloosa News|date=July 16, 2000}}</ref>

<ref name="Georgia High Court Upholds Sentence">{{Cite news|last=Skutch|first=Jan|title=Georgia High Court Upholds Sentence|url=http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1993/03021993SENTENCEUPHELD.pdf|newspaper=Savannah Morning News|date=March 21, 1992|access-date=August 14, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110922152045/http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1993/03021993SENTENCEUPHELD.pdf|archive-date=September 22, 2011|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="Georgia executes Troy Davis after his last pleas fail">{{cite news |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna44592285 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110924150947/http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/44592285/ns/today-today_news/t/georgia-executes-troy-davis-after-his-last-pleas-fail#.TntReNQYG5w |url-status=live |archive-date=September 24, 2011 |title=Georgia executes Troy Davis after his last pleas fail |publisher=NBC News |date=September 2, 2011 |access-date=September 22, 2011}}</ref>

<ref name="Georgia sets Sept. 21 execution for Troy Davis">{{cite news |url=http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2011/09/07/ap/business/main20102685.shtml |title=Georgia sets Sept. 21 execution for Troy Davis |agency=AP |work=CBS News |date=September 7, 2011 |access-date=September 7, 2011}}{{dead link|date=August 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref>

<ref name="Hundreds mourn officer">{{Cite news|last=Smith|first=Derek|title=Hundreds mourn officer|url=http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1989/198908AUG23FUNERAL%28EP%29.pdf|newspaper=Savannah Evening Press News|date=August 23, 1989|access-date=December 22, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111222014137/http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1989/198908AUG23FUNERAL%28EP%29.pdf|archive-date=December 22, 2011|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="Judge stands by decision to exclude testimony in Troy Davis case">{{Cite news |url=http://www.ajc.com/news/atlanta/judge-stands-by-decision-590844.html |title=Judge stands by decision to exclude testimony in Troy Davis case |work=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution |access-date=September 8, 2010 |date=August 12, 2010 |author=Rankin, Bill |archive-date=August 30, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100830050007/http://www.ajc.com/news/atlanta/judge-stands-by-decision-590844.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>

<ref name="Last-Ditch Appeals Stalls Georgia Execution">{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/22/us/final-pleas-and-vigils-in-troy-davis-execution.html?hp |title=Last-Ditch Appeals Stalls Georgia Execution |work=The New York Times |first=Kim |last=Severson |date=September 21, 2011 |access-date=September 21, 2011}}</ref>

<ref name="Lewis">{{cite news|url=http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/stories/2007/07/16/lewis_0716_web.html|title=Rep. Lewis' statement at Davis hearing|newspaper=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution|first=John|last=Lewis|authorlink=John Lewis|date=July 16, 2007|access-date=July 18, 2007}} {{dead link|date=November 2017|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref>

<ref name="Lowe">{{cite magazine |url=http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1643384,00.html?cnn=yes |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070718085629/http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1643384,00.html?cnn=yes |url-status=dead |archive-date=July 18, 2007 |title=Will Georgia Kill an Innocent Man? |first=Brendan |last=Lowe |magazine=Time magazine |date=July 13, 2007 |access-date=July 17, 2007}}</ref>

<ref name="MacPhail's son speaks on Davis appeal denial">{{Cite news |url=http://www.wtoc.com/Global/story.asp?S=10204510 |title=MacPhail's son speaks on Davis appeal denial |work=WTOC |date=April 17, 2009 |author=Manhatton, Mike |access-date=September 8, 2010 |archive-date=January 19, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120119130501/http://www.wtoc.com/Global/story.asp?S=10204510 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

<ref name="More than 600,000 sign petition against planned execution of Troy Davis">{{cite web |url=http://channel6newsonline.com/2011/09/more-than-600000-sign-petition-against-planned-execution-of-troy-davis/ |title=More than 600,000 sign petition against planned execution of Troy Davis |publisher=Channel 6 News |date=September 17, 2011 |access-date=September 19, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110926070104/http://channel6newsonline.com/2011/09/more-than-600000-sign-petition-against-planned-execution-of-troy-davis/ |archive-date=September 26, 2011 |df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="New Execution Date Set For Troy Anthony Davis Who Was Convicted Of 1989 Murder Of Savannah Police Officer Mark McPhail">{{cite web|url=http://law.ga.gov/00/press/detail/0,2668,87670814_103214659_125286435,00.html|title=New Execution Date Set For Troy Anthony Davis Who Was Convicted Of 1989 Murder Of Savannah Police Officer Mark McPhail|work=Attorney General of Georgia|date=October 15, 2008|access-date=September 21, 2011}}</ref>

<ref name="Not In Our Name: Georgia Must Not Execute Troy Davis">{{cite news|url=http://blog.amnestyusa.org/deathpenalty/not-in-our-name-georgia-must-not-execute-troy-davis/ |title=Not In Our Name: Georgia Must Not Execute Troy Davis |work=Amnesty USA |date=September 22, 2011 |access-date=September 22, 2011}}</ref>

<ref name="Officers link suspect to another shooting">{{Cite news |last=Smith |first=Derek |title=Officers link suspect to another shooting |url=http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1989/198908AUG21SUSPECT%28EP%29.pdf |access-date=September 21, 2011 |newspaper=Savannah Evening Press |date=August 21, 1989 |page=1 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110922151506/http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1989/198908AUG21SUSPECT%28EP%29.pdf |archive-date=September 22, 2011 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="Parole board bows out of Davis clemency bid">{{Cite news |url=http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/2007/08072007PAROLEBOARDBOWSOUT1.pdf |title=Parole board bows out of Davis clemency bid |first=Jan |last=Skutch |date=August 7, 2007 |newspaper=Savannah Morning News |access-date=August 24, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110922152202/http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/2007/08072007PAROLEBOARDBOWSOUT1.pdf |archive-date=September 22, 2011 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="Parole board to again hear Troy Anthony Davis case">{{cite news |url=http://www.ajc.com/news/parole-board-to-again-1162012.html |work=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution |title=Parole board to again hear Troy Anthony Davis case |publisher=Atlanta News |first=Bill |last=Rankin |date=September 7, 2011 |access-date=September 14, 2011 |archive-date=January 29, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120129130044/http://www.ajc.com/news/parole-board-to-again-1162012.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>

<ref name="Pope makes plea to spare life of Troy Davis">{{cite news |url=http://savannahnow.com/node/329351 |title=Pope makes plea to spare life of Troy Davis |first=Vicky |last=Eckenrode |newspaper=Savannah Morning News |date=July 21, 2007 |access-date=July 21, 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080922083553/http://savannahnow.com/node/329351 |archive-date=September 22, 2008 |df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="Pope's message for Perdue: Don't execute killer">{{Cite news |last=Campos |first=Carlos |title=Pope's message for Perdue: Don't execute killer |newspaper=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution |date=July 20, 2007}}</ref>

<ref name="Prosecutor says he has no doubt about Troy Davis's guilt">{{cite news |url=http://news.blogs.cnn.com/2011/09/20/prosecutor-says-he-has-no-doubt-about-troy-davis-guilt/?hpt=hp_t1 |title=Prosecutor says he has no doubt about Troy Davis's guilt |agency=CNN |date=September 21, 2011 |access-date=September 22, 2011 |archive-date=December 2, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201202132821/https://news.blogs.cnn.com/2011/09/20/prosecutor-says-he-has-no-doubt-about-troy-davis-guilt/?hpt=hp_t1 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

<ref name="Rallies protest impending execution of Troy Davis">{{Cite news |url=http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/atlanta/stories/2008/10/23/troy_davis_rallies.html |title=Rallies protest impending execution of Troy Davis |author=Boone, Christian |work=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution |date=October 23, 2008 |access-date=August 23, 2010 |archive-date=July 27, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110727045643/http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/atlanta/stories/2008/10/23/troy_davis_rallies.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>

<ref name="Reps. John Lewis and Hank Johnson Urge Clemency For Inmate Troy Anthony Davis">{{cite web |url=http://www.reddingnewsreview.com/newspages/2011newspages/lewis_johnson_11_100000082.html |title=Reps. John Lewis and Hank Johnson Urge Clemency For Inmate Troy Anthony Davis |publisher=Redding News Review |date=September 12, 2011 |access-date=September 14, 2011 |archive-date=November 23, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201123191418/http://www.reddingnewsreview.com/newspages/2011newspages/lewis_johnson_11_100000082.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>

<ref name="SCGA">{{cite court |litigants=Davis v. State |vol=660 |reporter=S.E.2d |opinion=354 |pinpoint= |court=Georgia Supreme Court |year=2008 |url=http://www.gasupreme.us/pdf/s07a1758.pdf |format=PDF}} {{dead link|date=November 2017|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref>

<ref name="Sharpton seeks clemency for Troy Anthony Davis">{{cite news|title=Sharpton seeks clemency for Troy Anthony Davis|first=Jeffry|last=Scott|author2=Scott Garner|newspaper=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution|date=September 21, 2008}}</ref>

<ref name="Stay of Execution for Georgia Man">{{cite magazine| url=http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1643971,00.html| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080408130748/http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1643971,00.html| url-status=dead| archive-date=April 8, 2008|title=Stay of Execution for Georgia Man|first=Brendan |last=Lowe|agency=Associated Press|magazine=Time magazine|date=July 16, 2007|access-date=July 23, 2007}}</ref>

<ref name="SupCtNo08-1443">{{cite web|url=https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/08pdf/08-1443Stevens.pdf |title=557 U.S. ____, "In Re Troy Anthony Davis on petition for Habeas Corpus No. 08–1443" |access-date=September 22, 2011}}</ref>

<ref name="Supreme Court declines case of death-row inmate who became cause célèbre">{{cite news |url=https://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Justice/2011/0328/Supreme-Court-declines-case-of-death-row-inmate-who-became-cause-celebre |title=Supreme Court declines case of death-row inmate who became cause célèbre |first=Warren |last=Richey |work=The Christian Science Monitor |date= March 28, 2011 |access-date=April 23, 2011}}</ref>

<ref name="The Long Road To The Davis Case - CBS News">{{Cite news|url=http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/10/14/opinion/courtwatch/main4522093.shtml |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081016234333/http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/10/14/opinion/courtwatch/main4522093.shtml |url-status=dead |archive-date=October 16, 2008 |title=The Long Road To The Davis Case – CBS News |publisher=CBS News|access-date=August 15, 2010|author=Cohen, Andrew|date= October 14, 2008}}</ref>

<ref name="Time 07-13-07">{{cite magazine |url=http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1643384,00.html?cnn=yes |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070718085629/http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1643384,00.html?cnn=yes |url-status=dead |archive-date=July 18, 2007 |title=Will Georgia Kill an Innocent Man?|first=Brendan|last=Lowe|magazine=Time magazine|date=July 13, 2007|access-date=September 9, 2011}}</ref>

<ref name="Troy Anthony Davis's execution set for Sept. 21">{{cite news |url=http://www.ajc.com/news/troy-anthony-davis-execution-1160699.html |work=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution |title=Troy Anthony Davis's execution set for Sept. 21 |publisher=Atlanta News |first=Bill |last=Rankin |date=September 7, 2011 |access-date=September 14, 2011 |archive-date=August 9, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120809214930/http://www.ajc.com/news/troy-anthony-davis-execution-1160699.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>

<ref name="Troy Davis Executed After Stay Denied">{{cite news|url=https://abcnews.go.com/US/troy-davis-executed-stay-denied-supreme-court/story?id=14571862 |title=Troy Davis Executed After Stay Denied |work=ABC News |date= September 22, 2011 |access-date=September 22, 2011}}</ref>

<ref name="Troy Davis Execution Stay Denied">{{cite news|url=https://abcnews.go.com/US/troy-davis-execution-stay-denied-supreme-court/story?id=14571862|title=Troy Davis Execution Stay Denied|last=Curry|first=Colleen|date=September 21, 2011|publisher=ABC News|access-date=September 22, 2011}}</ref>

<ref name="Troy Davis files new appeal with U.S. Supreme Court">{{cite news |url=http://www.ajc.com/news/troy-davis-files-new-814916.html |title=Troy Davis files new appeal with U.S. Supreme Court |agency=Associated Press |access-date=February 7, 2011 |date=January 21, 2011 |archive-date=January 30, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110130020305/http://www.ajc.com/news/troy-davis-files-new-814916.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>

<ref name="Troy Davis maintains innocence in final words">{{cite web |last=Associated Press |title=Troy Davis maintains innocence in final words|url=https://news.yahoo.com/troy-davis-maintains-innocence-final-words-035511137.html|work=Associated Press News Feed on Yahoo!|publisher=Yahoo!|access-date=September 22, 2011}}</ref>

<ref name="Troy Davis's attorneys file last-ditch court appeal">{{cite news|url=http://www.cnn.com/2011/09/21/justice/georgia-execution/index.html|title=Troy Davis's attorneys file last-ditch court appeal&#124;|publisher=CNN |date=September 21, 2011|access-date=September 21, 2011}}</ref>

<ref name="US Supreme Court Awards Convicted Murderer Troy Davis Late Stay Of Execution In Jackson, Georgia">{{Cite news |url=http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/World-News/US-Supreme-Court-Awards-Convicted-Murderer-Troy-Davis-Late-Stay-Of-Execution-In-Jackson-Georgia/Article/200809415105884?lpos=World_News_News_Your_Way_Region_5&lid=ARTICLE_15105884_US_Supreme_Court_Awards_Convicted_Murderer_Troy_Davis_Late_Stay_Of_Execution_In_Jackson%2C_Georgia |title=US Supreme Court Awards Convicted Murderer Troy Davis Late Stay Of Execution In Jackson, Georgia|newspaper=Sky News |date= September 24, 2008| access-date=August 17, 2010}}</ref>

<ref name="US court denies latest appeal by death row inmate">{{Cite news |url=http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/afp/101106/world/us_justice_execution_davis |title= US court denies latest appeal by death row inmate |agency=AFP |access-date=November 6, 2010 |date=November 5, 2010}}</ref>

<ref name="aireport2007">{{cite web|url=https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/amr51/023/2007/en/|title='Where is the justice for me?': The case of Troy Davis, facing execution in Georgia|publisher=Amnesty International|date=February 1, 2007|access-date=August 14, 2010}}</ref>

<ref name="ajc111107">{{Cite news|title=The Troy Davis Saga: Who killed Mark Allen MacPhail|newspaper=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution|date=November 11, 2007|author=Basu, Moni|author2=Jacobs, Sonji}}</ref>

<ref name="ajc121107">{{Cite news|title=The Troy Davis Saga: High court faces classic murder mystery|newspaper=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution|date=November 12, 2007|author=Basu, Moni|author2=Jacobs, Sonji}}</ref>

<ref name="ajc170308">{{Cite news |url=http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/stories/2008/03/17/davisdeny_0318.html |title= Condemned cop killer denied new trial |newspaper=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution |date=March 17, 2008 |author1=Rankin, Bill |author2=Jacobs, Sonji |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20110629131826/http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/stories/2008/03/17/davisdeny_0318.html |archive-date=June 29, 2011 |access-date=May 9, 2020}}</ref>

<ref name="ajc220908">{{Cite news|url=http://www.ajc.com/traffic/content/metro/stories/2008/09/22/davis_execution.html|title=State supreme court denies Davis's stay|author=Rankin, Bill, Garner, Marcus|newspaper=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution|date=September 22, 2008|access-date=August 18, 2010|archive-date=June 29, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110629131916/http://www.ajc.com/traffic/content/metro/stories/2008/09/22/davis_execution.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>

<ref name="ajc23062010">{{Cite news |url=http://www.ajc.com/news/atlanta/court-to-hear-troy-553951.html |title=Court to hear Troy Davis's innocence claims in cop's 1989 killing |work=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution |date=June 24, 2010 |access-date=June 24, 2010 |last=Rankin |first=Bill |archive-date=June 26, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100626103838/http://www.ajc.com/news/atlanta/court-to-hear-troy-553951.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>

<ref name="ajc23062010b">{{Cite news |url=http://www.ajc.com/news/atlanta/judge-must-decide-whether-556708.html |title=Witnesses back off testimony against Troy Davis |date=June 23, 2010 |access-date=September 5, 2010 |last=Rankin |first=Bill |archive-date=July 1, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100701223230/http://www.ajc.com/news/atlanta/judge-must-decide-whether-556708.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>

<ref name="ajc24062010">{{Cite news |url=http://www.ajc.com/news/atlanta/judge-must-decide-whether-556708.html |title=Judge must decide whether Troy Davis proved innocence in cop killing |work=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution |date=June 24, 2010 |access-date=June 24, 2010 |last=Rankin |first=Bill |archive-date=June 27, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100627215914/http://www.ajc.com/news/atlanta/judge-must-decide-whether-556708.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>

<ref name="ajc240810">{{Cite news |url=http://www.ajc.com/news/atlanta/judge-rejects-troy-davis-598327.html |title=Judge rejects Troy Davis's innocence claim |newspaper=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution |date=August 24, 2010 |author=Rankin, Bill |access-date=September 8, 2010 |archive-date=December 27, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111227070835/http://www.ajc.com/news/atlanta/judge-rejects-troy-davis-598327.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>

<ref name="ajc241008">{{Cite news |url=http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/stories/2008/10/24/troy_davis_stay.html |title=Court issues stay of execution for Troy Davis |date=October 24, 2008 |work=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution |access-date=December 9, 2008 |author=Rankin, Bill, Cook, Rhonda |archive-date=January 3, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120103062917/http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/stories/2008/10/24/troy_davis_stay.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>

<ref name="amnesty pr 06-25-2007">{{cite web|url=http://www.amnestyusa.org/document.php?lang=e&id=ENGUSA20070625001|title=Supreme Court's Death Penalty Ruling in Troy Davis Case Reveals 'Catastrophic Flaws in the U.S. Death Penalty Machine'|publisher=Amnesty International|date=June 25, 2007|access-date=April 9, 2009|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090401040051/http://www.amnestyusa.org/document.php?lang=e|archive-date=April 1, 2009|df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="amnesty pr clemency">{{cite web|url=http://www.amnestyusa.org/document.php?id=ENGUSA20080912002&lang=e|title=Amnesty International Condemns Parole Board Decision|publisher=Amnesty International|date=September 12, 2008|access-date=December 9, 2008|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081202000457/http://www.amnestyusa.org/document.php?lang=e&id=ENGUSA20080912002|archive-date=December 2, 2008|df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="belafonte">{{cite web|url=http://www.troyanthonydavis.org/Letter%20from%20Harry%20Belafonte.doc|title=Letter of Harry Belafonte|date=June 29, 2007|access-date=December 10, 2008|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110722042655/http://www.troyanthonydavis.org/Letter%20from%20Harry%20Belafonte.doc|archive-date=July 22, 2011|df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="carrier">{{cite web|url=http://www.sundaytimes.co.za/News/Article.aspx?id=517871|title=US inmate's execution on hold |first=Fanny|last=Carrier|publisher=AFP / The Sunday Times |date=July 17, 2007|access-date=July 18, 2007}}</ref>

<ref name="cnn">{{cite web |url=http://news.blogs.cnn.com/2011/09/21/lawyers-file-appeal-to-stay-troy-davis-execution/?on.cnn=1 |title=Troy Davis put to death – This Just In – CNN.com Blogs |publisher=News.blogs.cnn.com |access-date=September 22, 2011 |archive-date=December 2, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201202130304/https://news.blogs.cnn.com/2011/09/21/lawyers-file-appeal-to-stay-troy-davis-execution/?on.cnn=1 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

<ref name="csm240810">{{Cite news |url=https://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Justice/2010/0824/Death-row-inmate-Troy-Davis-Judge-upholds-conviction |title=Death row inmate Troy Davis: Judge upholds conviction |newspaper=Christian Science Monitor|date= August 24, 2010 |author=Richey, Warren|access-date=August 30, 2010}}</ref>

<ref name="dolpressrelease">{{cite web |url=http://law.ga.gov/00/press/detail/0,2668,87670814_87670929_121231342,00.html |title=New Execution Date Set For Troy Anthony Davis |publisher=Department of Law, State of Georgia |access-date=August 14, 2010 |date=September 3, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120626155042/http://law.ga.gov/00/press/detail/0,2668,87670814_87670929_121231342,00.html |archive-date=June 26, 2012 |df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="eckenrode">{{Cite news|last=Eckenrode|first=Vicky|title=Federal court rejects Savannah convict's bid|newspaper=Savannah Morning News|date=September 28, 2006|url=http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/2000-06/09282006FedCourtrejects.pdf|access-date=August 16, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110922152111/http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/2000-06/09282006FedCourtrejects.pdf|archive-date=September 22, 2011|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="guardian290609">{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/feedarticle/8581728 |title='91 death verdict splits Ga. jurors |work=The Guardian |location=UK|access-date=August 15, 2010|date= June 29, 2009|author=Bynum, Russ}}</ref>

<ref name="homeless">{{Cite news|url=http://savannahnow.com/troy-davis/2010-06-20/troy-davis-heads-back-savannah|last=Skutch|first=Jan|title=Troy Davis heads back to Savannah|date=June 20, 2010|newspaper=Savannah Morning News|access-date=August 10, 2010|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100625025019/http://savannahnow.com/troy-davis/2010-06-20/troy-davis-heads-back-savannah|archive-date=June 25, 2010|df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="liptak">{{cite news |url= https://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/29/us/29teacher.html |title=Troy Davis's Case Won't Be Reviewed by Supreme Court|first= Adam |last=Liptak |work=The New York Times |date= March 28, 2011 |issn=0362-4331 |access-date=April 23, 2011}}</ref>

<ref name="marks">{{Cite news|title=Mark's Story|newspaper=Savannah Morning News|date=September 15, 1991|author=McDaniel, Sandi|url=http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1991/09151991MarkMacPhailsStory2.pdf|access-date=August 14, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110922151540/http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1991/09151991MarkMacPhailsStory2.pdf|archive-date=September 22, 2011|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="nyt151008">{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/15/world/americas/15iht-15execute.16959347.html |title=U.S. Supreme Court rejects execution appeal|newspaper=The New York Times|author=Brown, Robbie |date= October 15, 2008|access-date=August 17, 2010}}</ref>

<ref name="prejean">{{cite web|url=http://www.troyanthonydavis.org/TroyDavis.doc|format=doc|title=Letter of Sister Helen Prejean|date=June 26, 2007|access-date=December 10, 2008|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070808042802/http://troyanthonydavis.org/TroyDavis.doc|archive-date=August 8, 2007|df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="savannah08241991">{{cite news|last=Skutch|first=Jan|title=Eyewitness: Davis Shot Cop, Smiled|url=http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1991/08241991DAVISSMILED.pdf|access-date=September 21, 2011|newspaper=Savannah Morning News|date=August 24, 1991|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110922151938/http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1991/08241991DAVISSMILED.pdf|archive-date=September 22, 2011|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="sep161189">{{Cite news|last=Skutch|first=Jan|title=Davis evidence can't be used, high court affirms|url=http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1991/05141991HIGHCOURTAFFIRMSBAN.pdf|newspaper=Savannah Evening Post|date=May 14, 1991|access-date=August 11, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111222014252/http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1991/05141991HIGHCOURTAFFIRMSBAN.pdf|archive-date=December 22, 2011|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<!--ref name="sep161189">{{Cite news |last=Skutch |first=Jan |title=Jury indicts Troy Davis in slaying |url=http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1989/198911NOV16INDICTMENT%28EP%29.pdf |newspaper=Savannah Evening Post |date=November 16, 1989 |page=1a |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110922151922/http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1989/198911NOV16INDICTMENT%28EP%29.pdf |archive-date=September 22, 2011 |df=mdy-all}}</ref> duplicate reference name -->

<ref name="sep240889">{{Cite news |last=Smith |first=Derek |title=Suspect jailed in police slaying |url=http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1989/198908AUG24SURRENDER(EP).pdf |newspaper=Savannah Evening Press |date=August 24, 1989 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110922151557/http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1989/198908AUG24SURRENDER(EP).pdf |archive-date=September 22, 2011 |df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="smn010590">{{Cite news |last=Skutch |first=Jan |title=Davis pleads not guilty in slaying |url=http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1990/05011990PLEASNOTGUILTY.pdf |newspaper=Savannah Morning News |date=May 1, 1990 |access-date=August 10, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110922151548/http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1990/05011990PLEASNOTGUILTY.pdf |archive-date=September 22, 2011 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="smn021091">{{Cite news |last=Skutch |first=Jan |title=Davis Requests New Trial In Police Officer's Slaying |url=http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1991/08231991openingstatement1.pdf |newspaper=Savannah Morning News |date=October 2, 1991 |access-date=August 11, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110922151535/http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1991/08231991openingstatement1.pdf |archive-date=September 22, 2011 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="smn050810">{{Cite news |url=http://savannahnow.com/news/2010-08-05/state-missed-boat-troy-davis-team-argues |title=State missed boat, Troy Davis team argues |newspaper=Savannah Morning News |author=Skutch, Jan |date=August 5, 2010 |access-date=August 9, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100807150108/http://savannahnow.com/news/2010-08-05/state-missed-boat-troy-davis-team-argues |archive-date=August 7, 2010 |df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="smn101190">{{Cite news |last=Skutch |first=Jan |title=Judge Bans Evidence, Cites Excessive Force |url=http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1990/11101990JUDGEBANSEVIDENCE2.pdf |newspaper=Savannah Morning News |date=November 10, 1990 |access-date=August 11, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110922151653/http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1990/11101990JUDGEBANSEVIDENCE2.pdf |archive-date=September 22, 2011 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="smn101208">{{Cite news |last=Armstrong |first=Jake |title=Credibility at stake in Davis bid |url=http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/2008/12102008CREDIBILITYATSTAKE1.pdf |newspaper=Savannah Morning News |date=December 10, 2008 |access-date=August 24, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110922152544/http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/2008/12102008CREDIBILITYATSTAKE1.pdf |archive-date=September 22, 2011 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="smn140891">{{Cite news |last=Skutch |first=Jan |title=Eyewitness: Davis Shot Cop, Smiled |url=http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1991/08241991DAVISSMILED.pdf |newspaper=Savannah Morning News |date=August 14, 1991 |access-date=September 21, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110922151938/http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1991/08241991DAVISSMILED.pdf |archive-date=September 22, 2011 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="smn150991">{{Cite news |last=McDaniel |first=Sandi |title=Mark's story |url=http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1991/09151991MarkMacPhailsStory2.pdf |newspaper=Savannah Morning News |date=September 15, 1991 |access-date=August 14, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110922151540/http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1991/09151991MarkMacPhailsStory2.pdf |archive-date=September 22, 2011 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="smn17042008">{{Cite news |last=Skutch |first=Jan |title=Appellate court rejects Davis |url=http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/2009/04172009APPELLATECOURTREJECTS.pdf |newspaper=Savannah Morning News |date=April 17, 1009 |access-date=August 24, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110922153041/http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/2009/04172009APPELLATECOURTREJECTS.pdf |archive-date=September 22, 2011 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="smn190292">{{Cite news |last=Skutch |first=Jan |title=Convicted Murderer Wants New Trial |url=http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1992/02191992NEWTRIALREQUEST1.pdf |newspaper=Savannah Morning News |date=February 19, 1992 |access-date=August 14, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110922152033/http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1992/02191992NEWTRIALREQUEST1.pdf |archive-date=September 22, 2011 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<!--<ref name="smn210891">{{Cite news |last=Rose |first=Tom |title=Police still looking for murder suspect |url=http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1989/198908AUG21LOOKING.pdf |newspaper=Savannah Morning News |date=August 21, 1989}}</ref> reference not used in main body of text-->

<ref name="smn220710">{{Cite news |url=http://savannahnow.com/latest-news/2010-07-22/troy-davis-lawyers-ask-judge-weigh-rejected-evidence |title=Troy Davis lawyers ask judge to weigh rejected evidence |work=Savannah Morning News |date=July 22, 2010 |access-date=September 8, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100726082902/http://savannahnow.com/latest-news/2010-07-22/troy-davis-lawyers-ask-judge-weigh-rejected-evidence |archive-date=July 26, 2010 |df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="smn230891">{{Cite news |last=Skutch |first=Jan |title=Testimony To Begin In '89 Murder Case |url=http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1991/08231991openingstatement1.pdf |newspaper=Savannah Morning News |date=August 23, 1991 |access-date=August 11, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110922151535/http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1991/08231991openingstatement1.pdf |archive-date=September 22, 2011 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="smn240610">{{Cite news |url=http://savannahnow.com/troy-davis/2010-06-24/troy-davis-hearing-could-end-today |title=Troy Davis hearing could end today |newspaper=Savannah Morning News |date=June 24, 2010 |access-date=September 5, 2010 |author=Skutch, Jan, Walck, Pamela E.}}</ref>

<ref name="smn240889">{{Cite news |last=Smith |first=Derek |title=Neighbors say suspect not the man they knew |url=http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1989/198908AUG24NEIGHBORSREACT.pdf |newspaper=Savannah Morning News |date=August 24, 1989 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110922151442/http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1989/198908AUG24NEIGHBORSREACT.pdf |archive-date=September 22, 2011 |df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="smn250889">{{Cite news |last=Rose |first=Tom |title=Police Now Required To Protect Troy Davis |url=http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1989/198908AUG25PENALTYPROTECT.pdf |newspaper=Savannah Morning News |date=August 25, 1989 |access-date=August 10, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110922151740/http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1989/198908AUG25PENALTYPROTECT.pdf |archive-date=September 22, 2011 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="smn260891">{{Cite news|last=Skutch|first=Jan|title=Judge Resumes Davis Murder Trial After Weekend Recess|url=http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1991/08261991RESUMESTRIAL.pdf|newspaper=Savannah Evening Press|date=August 26, 1991|access-date=August 13, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110922151943/http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1991/08261991RESUMESTRIAL.pdf|archive-date=September 22, 2011|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="smn270891a">{{Cite news|last=Skutch|first=Jan|title=Jail-mate: Davis admitted shooting officer Part A|url=http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1991/08271991DAVISADMITSSHOOTING1.pdf|newspaper=Savannah Evening Press|date=August 27, 1991|access-date=August 13, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110922151959/http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1991/08271991DAVISADMITSSHOOTING1.pdf|archive-date=September 22, 2011|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="smn270891b">{{Cite news|last=Skutch|first=Jan|title=Jail-mate: Davis admitted shooting officer Part B|url=http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1991/08271991DAVISADMITSSHOOTING2.pdf|newspaper=Savannah Evening Press|date=August 27, 1991|access-date=August 13, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110922151947/http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1991/08271991DAVISADMITSSHOOTING2.pdf|archive-date=September 22, 2011|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="smn280891">{{Cite news|last=Skutch|first=Jan|title=Davis: I fled before shots fired|url=http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1991/08281991IFLED1.pdf|newspaper=Savannah Morning News|date=August 28, 1991|access-date=August 13, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110922152005/http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1991/08281991IFLED1.pdf|archive-date=September 22, 2011|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="smn290891">{{Cite news|last=Skutch|first=Jan|title=Davis convicted|url=http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1991/08291991DAVISCONVICTED1.pdf|newspaper=Savannah Morning News|date=August 29, 1991|access-date=August 13, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111222014013/http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1991/08291991DAVISCONVICTED1.pdf|archive-date=December 22, 2011|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<!--<ref name="smn290891">{{Cite news|last=Skutch|first=Jan|title=Davis convicted|url=http://savannahnow.com/troy-anthony-davis-articles-1991|newspaper=Savannah Morning News|date=August 29, 1991|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111206003505/http://savannahnow.com/troy-anthony-davis-articles-1991|archive-date=December 6, 2011|df=mdy-all}}</ref> duplicate reference name -->

<ref name="smn300891a">{{Cite news|last=Skutch|first=Jan|title=Davis to jury: "Spare my life" part a|url=http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1991/08301991SPAREMYLIFE1.pdf|newspaper=Savannah Morning News|date=August 30, 1991|access-date=August 14, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110922152012/http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1991/08301991SPAREMYLIFE1.pdf|archive-date=September 22, 2011|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="smn300891b">{{Cite news|last=Skutch|first=Jan|title=Davis to jury: "Spare my life" part b|url=http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1991/08301991SPAREMYLIFE2.pdf|newspaper=Savannah Morning News|date=August 30, 1991|access-date=August 14, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110922152024/http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1991/08301991SPAREMYLIFE2.pdf|archive-date=September 22, 2011|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="smn310891">{{Cite news|last=Fishman|first=Jane|title=Davises recall the kindness of defendant|url=http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1991/08311991Davissidebar1.pdf|newspaper=Savannah Morning News|date=August 31, 1991|page=1A|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110922151436/http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1991/08311991Davissidebar1.pdf|archive-date=September 22, 2011|df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<!--ref name="smn310891">{{Cite news|last=Skutch|first=Jan|title=Davis sentenced to death|url=http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1991/08311991SENTENCEDTODEATH1.pdf|newspaper=Savannah Morning News|date=August 31, 1991|access-date=December 22, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160121084327/http://multimedia.savannahnow.com/media/DavisMcPhail/1991/08311991SENTENCEDTODEATH1.pdf|archive-date=January 21, 2016|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref> duplicate reference name -->"smn310891"

<ref name="SS1">{{cite web| last=Lundin|first=Leigh |title=The Crime of Capital Punishment| url=https://sleuthsayers.blogspot.com/2011/10/crime-of-capital-punishment.html |work=Death Penalty| publisher=SleuthSayers| location=Orlando |date=October 2, 2011}}</ref>

<ref name="state">{{cite web |url=http://www.pap.state.ga.us/opencms/opencms/ |title=georgia state board of pardons and paroles |publisher=Pap.state.ga.us |access-date=September 22, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110923184117/http://www.pap.state.ga.us/opencms/opencms |archive-date=September 23, 2011 |df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="tutu">{{cite web|url=http://www.troyanthonydavis.org/tutu.pdf|title=Letter of Most Reverend Desmond M. Tutu|date=June 26, 2007|access-date=December 10, 2008|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080828053237/http://troyanthonydavis.org/tutu.pdf|archive-date=August 28, 2008|df=mdy-all}}</ref>

<ref name="tvnz">{{Cite news|url=http://tvnz.co.nz/view/news_world_story_skin/1230877 |title=Campaign grows to halt execution |publisher=TV New Zealand|date=July 14, 2007|access-date=August 15, 2010}}</ref>

<ref name="wp160707">{{Cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/07/15/AR2007071501250.html |title=Execution Of Ga. Man Near Despite Recantations|newspaper=Washington Post |author=Whoriskey, Peter|date=July 16, 2007 |access-date=August 15, 2010}}</ref>

<ref name="wsav">{{cite web |url=http://www.wsav.com/sav/news/local/article/supreme_court_postpones_davis_decision/21436/ |archive-url=https://archive.today/20110807055600/http://www.wsav.com/sav/news/local/article/supreme_court_postpones_davis_decision/21436/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=August 7, 2011 |title=Supreme Court Postpones Davis Decision &#124; WSAV TV |publisher=Wsav.com |access-date=September 22, 2011}}</ref>

<ref name="wtoc270809">{{Cite news |url=http://www.wtoc.com/Global/story.asp?S=10941323 |title=Supreme Court grants Davis another hearing |date=August 27, 2009 |publisher=WTOC |access-date=August 18, 2010 |archive-date=January 19, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120119142223/http://www.wtoc.com/Global/story.asp?S=10941323 |url-status=dead }}</ref> }}

==External links== *{{Guardian topic}} *[https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/amr51/023/2007/en/ Amnesty International.USA: 'Where is the justice for me?' : The case of Troy Davis, facing execution in Georgia] ;U.S. Supreme Court * ''Troy Anthony Davis v. Georgia'', No. 08-66 (petition for writ of certiorari), [https://www.supremecourt.gov/Search.aspx?FileName=/docketfiles/08-66.htm docket] * ''In re Troy Anthony Davis'', No. 08-1443 (petition for writ of habeas corpus), [https://www.supremecourt.gov/Search.aspx?FileName=/docketfiles/08-1443.htm docket] * ''In re Troy Anthony Davis'', No. 08-1443, [https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/08pdf/08-1443Stevens.pdf Order of the Court and concurring opinion by Justice Stevens], August 17, 2009 * ''In re Troy Anthony Davis'', No. 08-1443, [https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/08pdf/08-1443Scalia.pdf Dissenting opinion by Justice Scalia], August 17, 2009

;U.S. District Court * ''In re Troy Anthony Davis'', No. CV409-130, (S.D. Ga. Aug.<!-- comment to prevent date change --> 24, 2010), Final Order Denying Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus as to Troy Anthony Davis. [https://web.archive.org/web/20101226094713/http://www.gasd.uscourts.gov/pdf/409cv00130_92part1.pdf pages 1–62]; [https://web.archive.org/web/20101226103855/http://www.gasd.uscourts.gov/pdf/409cv00130_92part2.pdf pages 63–174].

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Davis, Troy}} Category:1968 births Category:2011 deaths Category:21st-century American murderers Category:American people executed for murdering police officers Category:Executed African-American people Category:People from Savannah, Georgia Category:21st-century executions of American people Category:Executed people from Georgia (U.S. state) Category:African-American-related controversies Category:21st-century African-American people Category:People convicted of murder by Georgia (U.S. state) Category:People executed by Georgia (U.S. state) by lethal injection Category:Violence against homeless people in the United States