“But the judge overseeing the hearing, William T. Moore Jr., decided that in order to overturn the original jury verdict, Davis needed not only to cast doubt on the evidence against him, but to provide “clear and compelling” proof of his innocence. In an August 2010 ruling dismissing Davis’ appeal, he declared that while the state’s case “may not be ironclad,” Davis failed to make a showing of “actual innocence” and thus should not be granted a new trial. The evidentiary hearing was the first such legal proceeding in more than 50 years.
To not grant a new trial is ridiculous. It’s a capital case for goodness sake.
Once you have been found guilty you have to prove your innocence. The innocent until proven guilty no longer applies.
That is, unfortunately, the problem here, and the judge is correct.
Now the kickback starts. Greenies, your time is almost up.
Via Drudge
Nobel Prize-Winning Physicist Resigns Over Global Warming
The same study showed that 69 percent of those polled believe it’s at least somewhat likely that some scientists have falsified research data in order to support their own theories and beliefs.
Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2011/09/14/nobel-prize-winning-physicist-resigns-from-top-physics-group-over-global/#ixzz1Y4xo2t24
Langmann is right. This is an appeal, not an original trial. He either has to prove innocence by C&C evidence (more than preponderance but less than beyond a reasonable doubt) or find a legal or procedural defect in the trial.
But here is the real killer (double entendre intended)
The self-proclaimed “Innocence Project” claims to have cleared hundreds of death row inmates by presenting evidence which only cast doubt on guilt, not clear and convincing evidence of innocence. In many cases they used DNA evidence that some human being other than the convict happened to touch the victims. It could have been an accomplice. It could have been totally unrelated and irrelevant DNA. Yet raising a doubt in one judge’s mind 20 years after the trial is sufficient to cast out all other evidence of guilt.
This guy just needs to wait a few years until a leftist president appoints enough liberal judges, and then have IP request a DNA test.
The ironic thing is that in murder/rape cases, the use of DNA evidence to show some other male touched the victim effectively nullifies rape shield laws.
Davis has less than 6 days left.
He’s guilty of being in the vicinity when an off duty police officer was shot.
Not to be confused with being an off duty RCMP and killing Orion Hutchinson. That and tasering a man to death are just unfortunate events.
Yup, first commenter is right. Whether or not he did it (and I’m not familiar with the details of the case), as far as the justice system is concerned, he was proven guilty in a court of law. The burden of proof now shifts to him to prove his innocence.
“The murder weapon was never recovered and no physical evidence was found linking Davis to the crime, and he has always maintained that another man at the scene was responsible for the shooting.
Since the original trial in 1991, seven of nine prosecution witnesses that linked Davis to the shooting have either recanted or materially altered the stories they told the jury, but Davis’ attempts to secure a retrial have been persistently rebuffed by state and federal courts.”
According to Sessions he should have good case for commutation of the death sentence to life.
‘The execution of Troy Davis, a Georgia death row inmate scheduled to die in less than a week, should be halted because of “pervasive, persistent doubts” about his guilt, said William S. Sessions, a former federal district judge in Texas and FBI director under Presidents Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton, in a sharply-worded editorial on Thursday.
“Serious questions about Mr. Davis’ guilt, highlighted by witness recantations, allegations of police coercion, and a lack of relevant physical evidence, continue to plague his conviction,” Sessions wrote. He urged a state pardons board to commute the sentence to life in prison.’
If 7 of 9 witnesses are recanting their trial evidence, then that would suggest the evidence at trial is somewhat shaky and casts some doubt on the original evidence as presented. In short, the evidence, as suggested by the article, appears to be heavily ‘ginned up’. Maybe they need a second look, before they send him off to meet his maker.
Cheers
Hans Rupprecht, Commander in Chief
1st Saint Nicolaas Army
Army Group “True North”
A little bit rich coming from people who harp on the OJ verdict all the time. Either innocent until proven guilty is important, and applied in all cases, or it is not. Which is it? Or maybe it only applies to people you like?
Kevin Lafayette said: “Or maybe it only applies to people you like?”
Kevin, given the endless parade of obviously guilty people who have been given new trials based on very slim technicalities and guys like OJ getting off due to shenanigans, you have to admit it does raise one’s eyebrows to see a situation where the prosecution’s case fell apart this badly and the judge refuses a new trial anyway. As POWinCA said above, this is not common practice.
I happen to agree that the onus is on the prisoner to prove innocence once he has been proven guilty, or at least demonstrate gross incompetence/malfeasance on the part of police and the Crown. However I seemed to be ‘way off the beaten track of law until this case came up.
Interesting, to say the least. Maybe the judge knows something? Or maybe he has friends in low places who want this guy dead? Covering up for the cops? Hard to say. One thing is for sure, this isn’t how they normally do it.
perhaps he should consult Steven Truscott about the means and processes of getting a retrial/pardon/declaration of innocence]whatever.
the problem boils down to blindered cops and prosecutors with political ambitions. maybe if THEY come under threat of lengthy imprisonment things like this wouldnt happen.
p.s. please anyone call up RCMP headquarters and tell them in Canuckistan ever introduces retroactive death penalty for official corruption I volunteer to put a bullet in former commissioner Zaccardelli fukcin’ head.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giuliano_Zaccardelli
Socialism? WTF does socialism have to do with it?
It is his job to prove his innocence, he was found GUILTY, ’nuff said.
“The execution of Troy Davis, a Georgia death row inmate scheduled to die in less than a week, should be halted because of “pervasive, persistent doubts” about his guilt, said William S. Sessions, a former federal district judge in Texas and FBI director under Presidents Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton, in a sharply-worded editorial on Thursday.”
This guy’s opinion should carry some weight.No one advocates turning Davis loose,just commuting the sentence to Life in prison,so what’s the problem,he’s never going to be a danger to society.
For the record,I’m very much PRO-capital punishment,but only of the evidence is overwhelming, not as questionable as in this case.
dmorris are you gonna pay his upkeep?
This may be a startling idea to some. How many appeals can you make, before the State who pays for them. Says enough? I figure 3 appeals is enough myself if its a compelling case. This never ending legal shuffle by lawyers , who gai in each case at the publics purse. Has to end sometime.
I don’t know much about this case buy in Canada way to many folks who are already found guilty have appeal after appeal till they die. Some set fee just to be rid of them. Its become an abuse in the name of Justice in some cases.
JMO
Socialism? The hell?
Someone’s started huffing glue a bit early today.
Onus (burden of proof) in an appead (unlike an indictment trial) is on the appelant. This judge was within his right to find insufficient proof, but if appeals had juries he would have to fight the will of the people on this one. Appeal judges get away with murder .
At least it’s an improvement over Canada’s Human Rights Commissions, where “you are guilty because a member of a Left interest group said you are guilty”. Innocense doesn’t even enter into the picture, either before or after any evidence is shown.
The HRC’s are the contemporary version of the Holy Spanish Inquistion from a 1,000 years ago, where everybody was automatically guilty just for appearing before the Inquistion.
That’s why our Lefty HRC’s identify so closely with Islamo-fascism — the 1,000 year old anti-democratic Muslim theocratic tyrannies remind them of the old Holy Spanish Inquistions that the White Christian ancestors of the HRC’s were so fond of. Tyranny is in their blood.
EBD, if you think they fit 250,000 on that lawn, you’re even stupider than you first sounded. But let us, just for one second, pretend that you’re right. So what? Got any insight on the second video? Want me to go find another one for ya? Here ya go:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U_KqVWrq3QI
how many more do I need to give you before you pull your head out of your ass and admit that christians do their crazy shit in public on a regular basis?
So, after all the shouting and yelling is done, there was credible evidence before the jury on which they could reasonably convict, and they did. Am I supposed to get all exercised about this?
The word is “exorcized” ebt, not “exercised”. And no, you shouldn’t get “exorcized” unless you are finally ready to have those demons jumping around in your brain cast out by an exorcist.