Troy Davis Story: Inmate's Execution Sparks Outcry Around the Globe
The Troy Davis case has not only captivated Americans, but dignitaries, journalists, and protestors around the world have been responding to the case, and many of them with disdain.
Prior to Davis’ Sept. 21 execution in Texas, leaders such as Pope Benedict XVI, former French Prime Minister Laurent Fabius, and former President Jimmy Carter, all urged the execution to be halted.
Upon Davis’ execution, protests and vigils erupted around the world with supporters from Hong Kong to Paris crying out against the death penalty.
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Many commentators across Europe are now describing the U.S. justice system as both brutal and flawed.
Laurent Fabius, a former French prime minister spoke on Europe 1 radio of the execution saying, "The United States is a very democratic country, but these are barbaric practices."
Germany's junior minister for human rights Markus Loening said, "There are still serious doubts about his guilt. An execution is irreversible – a judicial error can never be repaired."
The Christian Science Monitor quoted a Palestinian blogger who said, "Americans seem to be more disgusted with death-row in Saudi Arabia and Iran than they are in our own country. If you murder one person, you get sentenced to jail or death. If you murder millions, it’s "mission accomplished."
Davis, 42, was executed in Georgia on Wednesday amid concerns over faulty evidence related to several witnesses recanting their statements.
Furthermore, activists are also arguing that Davis had been mistreated throughout his trial due to the fact that Wednesday was his fourth scheduled execution.
Ed Jackson of the Guardian newspaper argued that Davis already endured enough torture, arguing that experts in death row find that "multiple experiences with imminent death is tantamount to torture."
Death penalty abolitionists are optimistic that, although they have suffered a tremendous defeat, Davis' case still holds positive ramifications for the future.
Davis died by injection for the 1989 slaying of off-duty Savannah police officer Mark MacPhail.
