State Sanctioned Murder Is Always Wrong

Sept 23rd, 2011
by F. Grey Parker
Please join Amnesty International and commit to ending state sponsored murder

Troy Davis image via

There has been some vulgar pushback following the state sanctioned murder of Troy Davis in Georgia. Those of us who have been steadfast in our opposition to the practice of capital punishment for years have been accused of only recently taking an interest. It has been suggested, with ominous undertones, that we "didn't care" about the other victim in the Davis case, the late Mark MacPhail. Our motives have been made suspect. This is not only dishonorable, it is vile.

What's more, we have been called "hypocrites for "ignoring" the execution in Texas of the notorious Lawrence Russell Brewer that same evening.

L.R. Brewer image via

We weren't ignoring it. We were also fighting against Brewer's execution on general principle. However, having a provably reasonable doubt in the Davis case made it a greater imperative not only for us, but for millions of educated and informed citizens of the world. Let's face it. The cause of Brewer was not a popular one. The public's reluctance to sign our petitions on his behalf isn't exactly hard to fathom.

S.D. Crowe image via

Others have spent time today lamenting the decision of the Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles to commute the death sentence of Samuel David Crowe yesterday evening. This is wrong. 

Is it shocking that his sentence was not carried out and that he will now spend life in prison, rewarded for simply having said he is "sorry" for his crime?

Yes, it is.

Is it suspicious that this commutation came just a day after after Davis' execution?

Absolutely. 

The apparent hypocrisy begs a serious inquiry into the workings of the Georgia system.

That said, we who fought for Troy Davis should celebrate the Crowe decision. We should also condemn the killing of Brewer. That this penalty is allowed at all is the problem.

There is no deterrent value. It is revenge. Some receive it while others don't at the whim of judges and juries.

Allen Ault, the former warden of the Jackson, Georgia prison in which the Davis sentence was carried out, was one of six former penal officials who called for clemency in the Davis case. Mr Ault, a man who has overseen executions in that very death chamber, had this to say to MSNBC in the hours following Davis' death:

"When you're in the death chamber ordering an execution, and even if in your mind, if you're a man of conscience, actually believe somebody is guilty, it's still a very premeditated murder. I mean, it's scripted and rehearsed. It's about as premeditated as any killing that you can do."

It's murder. You can dress it up, you can engage in hyperbole about the "worst of the worst," you can argue about and distort "tradition" and you can generally find a good number of Americans who are willing to do as many rhetorical back flips as they need to in order to call it something else. It's still murder.

Lawrence O'Donnell did a fine job of pointing out why commitment to the end of all capital sentences is a moral duty. You might not be aware that there was a third execution yesterday. The cameras weren't there. They had already folded up shop. We didn't get very many supporters for Derrick O'Neill Mason. There was no question of his guilt and his crime was monstrous. And yet, some of us were fighting for him. Yes, even him. Here's why...

In O'Donnell's words, "as long as we have Derrick O'Neill Masons and Lawrence Russel Brewers we are going to have Troy Davises." Period.

Quote Of The Day - Here and Now Edition

Sept 21st, 2011

"May God have mercy on your souls."
-- Troy Davis to his executioners moments before his death

The End Of Troy Davis

Sept 21st, 2011
by F. Grey Parker


UPDATE 10:15pm CST - Troy Davis was executed at 11:08pm EDT

9:45pm CST via ABC:

"The U.S. Supreme Court denied a last-minute stay of execution for Troy Davis after a delay to weigh arguments."



There was no physical evidence in his case. He was convicted on the basis of eyewitness testimony only for the killing of an off-duty police officer. 7 of the 9 witnesses against him have recanted. There are multiple allegations of police intimidation in the investigative phase. What's more, there is another suspect. It is more likely that this other suspect committed the crime.

The fight to prevent this miscarriage of justice has not merely been the latest cause celebre of committed opponents of capital punishment. For example, here is former F.B.I. direstor William Sessions:

"What quickly will become apparent is that serious questions about Davis’ guilt, highlighted by witness recantations, allegations of police coercion and a lack of relevant physical evidence, continue to plague his conviction. Last summer, an extraordinary hearing ordered by the U.S. Supreme Court to answer these questions instead left us with more doubt.

At Davis’ evidentiary hearing, witnesses called by Davis recanted trial testimony and made allegations of police pressure. Others testified that an alternative suspect had confessed to them that he committed the crime. One eyewitness testified, for the first time, that he saw this other suspect, a relative of his, commit the crime. Police witnesses for the state of Georgia alternatively asserted that the original trial testimony was the true version of events and that it was elicited without coercion."

For more background, here is last week's (very belated) CNN report:


More than a million informed Americans have acted on Mr. Davis' behalf. To no avail. Yesterday, the Georgia Board on Pardons and Paroles basically said "who cares."

And now, this.