Death Row Exoneree to Speak Nov. 7

Kerry Max Cook, Let Nothing Keep You Down, will lecture at Indiana University School of Law-Indianapolis on Friday, November 7th at 5 p.m. in the Wynne Courtroom Inlow Hall, with reception and book signing at 6 p.m. The event is free and open to the public. Cook is an advocate for legal reform and has lectured at Princeton, Yale, and the University of Chicago, as well as internationally since gaining his freedom from death row.

Cook was born in Stuttgart, Germany into an Army family, and spent much of his youth on Army bases. He returned to the United States with his family in 1972 to live in Texas. In 1997, at age 20, Cook was arrested and wrongly convicted of capital murder, a crime for which he would spend the next two decades on death row. Kerry Max Cook’s story was part of the critically acclaimed play and movie “The Exonerated.” Cook has appeared on Nightline, Geraldo, Catherine Crier Live, the Today Show, and Frontline.

Cook’s book, Chasing Justice, was voted “book of the year” in 2007 by Reader’s Digest and can be purchased at the reception and personally autographed. Books are $15 and cash or checks can be accepted. www.chasingjustice.com

Troy Davis Execution Stayed

The execution of Troy Davis which had been scheduled for October 27th was stayed by a federal appeals court last Friday:

Troy Davis, 40, was scheduled to be executed Monday for the murder of Savannah Police Officer Mark MacPhail. But the three-judge panel of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals stayed the execution and ordered his attorneys to prove whether he can meet "stringent requirements" to press his appeal.

Davis' supporters have called for a new trial because seven of the nine key witnesses against him have recanted their testimony, and the doubts about his guilt have won him the support of former President Jimmy Carter and other prominent advocates.

It was the third time since July 2007 that Davis has been spared the death penalty by a late court decision.

A Quarter-Century Later, Zolo Azania Sentenced to 74 Years

Around 2:30 today, the state of Indiana dismissed its request for the death penalty for Zolo Azania in a deal for a sentence of 74 years.

Azania was originally convicted in 1982 and now, 26 years later, there is closure.

When 78% Testimony Recantation Isn't Enough

Troubling news from the Supreme Court:

AP:

The Supreme Court has cleared the way for a Georgia man to be put to death for killing a police officer two weeks after it halted his execution to consider his appeal.

Troy Davis asked the high court to intervene in his case and order a new trial because seven of the nine witnesses against him have recanted their testimony.

...Davis' lawyers say new evidence proves their client was a victim of mistaken identity. Besides those who have recanted their testimony, three others who did not testify have said Sylvester ''Red'' Coles -- who testified against Davis at his trial -- confessed to the killing.

SCOTUSblog:

Refusing to decide whether the death penalty is barred for an individual with a strong claim of innocence, the Supreme Court on Tuesday turned aside the appeal of Georgia death-row inmate Troy Anthony Davis. The order clears the way for the state to set a new execution date; a Supreme Court stay of the execution expired with the denial of review. The case is Davis v. Georgia (08-66).

Case Closed

Today, the U.S. Supreme Court added a footnote to the Kennedy v. Louisiana opinion and announced that they would not be rehearing it.

Certainly an appropriate and measured response to the revelation that they had missed a relevant federal statute when considering the case (none of the briefs mentioned the statute--a military blogger brought it up of all things).