An Innocent Man Will Be Executed. How Can We Prevent This From Happening Again?

 Troy Davis, who is likely innocent of the crime for which he was convicted, will be executed today in Georgia. This is a grave injustice that requires intervention by the courts, and should prompt a broad investigation into the fairness of our justice system.

The Georgia Parole Board has denied Davis' appeal, and isn't likely to reconsider it. Davis is scheduled to be executed tonight at 7:00pm. There is no physical evidence linking him to the murder (the murder of a white police officer in the south, no less), the case was mishandled by police, and the witnesses have since recanted. This execution must be stopped.

The courts have intervened in some high-profile cases as of late. Cleve Foster, a Texas inmate, was granted a third stay of execution by the U.S. Supreme Court (by writ of cert) in a case that actually has evidence of his guilt. Duane Buck, also a Texas inmate (surprise), was granted a stay of execution largely due to the fact that testimony was given by a psychologist who claimed that black men were more likely to commit violent crimes. The West Memphis Three, one of which was sitting on death row, were released after spending nearly two decades in jail for the murders of three boys. They were convicted in large part because they were misfits who liked heavy metal music and wore black clothing. Mr. Davis' case has as much a basis as these to warrant intervention by the courts. 

I was at a seminar recently, and a criminal defense attorney explained jurors' understandings of burdens of proof. He talked about jury selection for criminal cases and uses this example to educate the jurors. I'll paraphrase. Let's take the three standards: a preponderance of the evidence, clear and convincing evidence, and beyond an reasonable doubt. A preponderance of the evidence essentially means that it is more likely than not that the person is liable (50.1%). Clear and convincing evidence is even higher. And beyond a reasonable doubt is much higher than the clear and convincing standard. The clear and convincing standard is used when a court determines if a child should be taken away from a parent. How high do you think the burden should be to take your child away from you? And now think about how high the standard of beyond a reasonable doubt should be to convict someone. 

Without the guidance above, most jurors articulate the beyond a reasonable doubt standard as something closer to a preponderance of the evidence. And now think about how jurors will be affected if a judge lets questionable evidence in at trial, or fails to police his or her court room and let the prosecutors operate freely during questioning. The defendant has no chance.

Now let's think about the standard of beyond a reasonable doubt, in light of all of the evidence that has come out of late, and whether the State has met its burden of proof in the case of Troy Davis. Let's also consider how many of these cases are out there where no presumption of innocence was given, little or no evidence was presented, and yet the individual was convicted. A man's life and the integrity of our justice system are at stake. We must stop not only this execution, but take steps to ensure that similar miscarriages of justice don't happen again.

In Brown v. Board of Education, the U.S. Supreme Court's decision created systemic change in the education system in the name of fairness and justice. Schools were required to integrate "with all deliberate speed." A similar action could be taken against courts that systematically undermine the constitutional rights of defendants and create situations like the one we find with Mr. Davis. Grave injustices that result in the imprisonment and execution of individuals based on racism, junk science or local biases need to be addressed in a broader scope so that an innocent person's freedom is never taken away again. We need to ensure that courts provide due process and justice for every person who comes before them. And if they aren't currently providing such, they must remedy their defects "with all deliberate speed."