NAACP Works to Save Life of Troy Anthony Davis

Evidence in case points to innocence of man set to be executed

WASHINGTON, May 19 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Troy Anthony Davis, 23, is set
to be executed in the state of Georgia despite his strong claim of innocence.
He was sentenced to death for the murder of Savannah, Georgia police officer
Mark Allen MacPhail on questionable eyewitness testimony. Seven out of nine
witnesses have recanted or contradicted their testimony, no murder weapon was
found, and no physical evidence links Davis to the crime. The NAACP is calling
on supporters to send letters and emails to Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue
asking him to commute Davis' sentence. The courts are refusing to consider
the new evidence despite the overwhelming amount of facts that indicate that
Mr. Davis, an African American man, is innocent.

"Governor Perdue must act quickly and decisively to prevent Troy Anthony
Davis, a young African American man, from being executed for a crime he did
not commit," stated NAACP President and CEO Benjamin Todd Jealous. "Georgia
is no exception to the rest of the country. All over the nation, we have
witnessed scores of persons wrongfully sentenced to death. Far too often,
African American men are overrepresented in their ranks. The preponderance of
evidence in Troy Anthony Davis' case points to his innocence. Justice
requires that we not turn a blind eye to killing an innocent man -- a travesty
that can never be rectified. We must join together to raise our voice in a
clarion call to Georgia Governor Perdue to stop this injustice and save Troy
Anthony Davis' life," Jealous said.

Today is Global Troy Anthony Davis day, coordinated by Amnesty International,
during which people from around the world will press for the commutation of
Davis' sentence.

Racism continues to characterize the use of the death penalty in the U.S.
Nearly 60 percent of all inmates on federal death row are racial or ethnic
minorities. While whites represent approximately 50 percent of murder victims
in the U.S., they represent a disproportionate 80 percent of the murder
victims for which current death row inmates have been sentenced. The United
States is one of only a few countries -- China, Iran and Saudi Arabia -- that
still sanctions the murder of its prisoners.

Individuals can send emails to Governor Perdue by visiting NAACP.org.

SOURCE NAACP

Leila McDowell of NAACP, +1-202-463-2940 ext 1005, Lmcdowell@naacpnet.org