Star to meet death row prisoner

originally published: 26th September 2009
all credits: Daily Express

The drummer from indie band Keane is meeting a death row prisoner in the US, jailed in what campaigners believe to be a miscarriage of justice. Musician Richard Hughes, 34, will offer support to Troy Davis who was jailed for killing police officer Mark Allen MacPhail in 1989.

Davis, 40, was convicted in 1991 and is being held on death row at the Diagnostic and Classification Prison in Jackson, Georgia. But campaigners say authorities failed to produce a murder weapon or any physical evidence linking Davis to the crime. Seven of the nine witnesses against him later recanted or changed initial testimonies in sworn affidavits.

Hughes said: “I am totally against the death penalty and the case of Troy Davis is a terrifying illustration of the reasons why. Troy is very likely innocent, yet he has been on the brink of execution, with only last minute reprieves keeping him alive.

He continues to fight for the chance to prove his innocence.” He has travelled to Georgia with UK death penalty campaigner Kim Manning Cooper and Alistair Carmichael, Liberal Democrat MP for Orkney and Shetland.

Mr Manning Cooper explained: “Even those who don’t agree with Amnesty’s stance in opposing all executions ought to be shocked by this case. But the tide may now be turning and it’s heartening to see the support for Troy growing all the time.”

Mr Carmichael said: “The case against Mr Davis is fundamentally unsound. For the Georgia authorities to rely on it for the basis of an execution would be a negation of any notion of justice. In such an event I would certainly seek to secure the firmest possible protest from the UK government.”

Other News:

Troy Davis and the Quest for Justice
7th January 2010

Banging the drum for Troy Davis
25th September 2009

Former Inmate Recounts Death Row Experiences
25th September 2009

Posted by Larry Fedja on 27/09/2009. Filed under Announcements,Capital Punishment. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry