davis case you want to fill this and a little bit who are the people who recanted their testimony who are the people who have come forward and and said no he didn't do it and who are they saying to do it . well you you feel that in very well. the even at the time of the trial and initially before it when it was being investigated so best recalls was thought possibly to be the man who committed these crimes he himself went to the police and implicated troy davis and he's one of the two people who have not changed his testimony for obvious reasons but as you pointed out in addition to the seven. of nine witnesses who have now either recanted completely or contradicted their earlier testimony. numerous people have now come forward to implicate sylvester coles even more so at the very least it raises the strongest doubts about whether troy davis really committed this crime and certainly it ought to give pause to the parole board before it orders that this execution be carried out if in fact in my mind it raises the question why isn't this guy getting a new trial i mean forget about whethe

foreign policy chief responded to the news of davis's jeff yesterday by saying of the e.u. opposes the use of capital punishment in all circumstances and by calling for a universal moratorium so what america ever signed on to something like that might trade davis finally change our society or is this notion of seeing justice carried out that way to integrate well joining me to discuss it as james who knows host of the bottom line and reform school on petey the james i want to thank you for joining us tonight and i guess first if we can just start with where you fall in this entire discussion from what i understand you support the death penalty but in the particular case of troy davis you were against it. well i think there's a real looking at this oftentimes gets swept under the rug and we're dealing with the things here you because it is a contentious issue there's a lot at stake in of course the downside is if you ask some people and i think there are two claims at work the first claim is that there are some crimes that are so heinous that the only commensurate penalty is

here's chip reid. >> nearly two years ago it looked like charlie davies would never play soccer again. >> many people doubted me. in my own head, i knew nothing would keep me from getting back on the field. >> davie, a star forward for the u.s. national soccer team, was horribly injured in a car accident near washington, d.c., that killed another passenger. davie's right leg was fractured in three places, his eye socket shattered, his bladder lacerated, his nose and left elbow broken. several days after the accident, davies woke up in a hospital, unsure where he was and what had happened. >> the first thing i saw was about 36 staples starting from my belly button. >> reporter: when davies' doctor assessed his condition, the outlook was bleak. >> the injuries i had, basically it would be a long shot if i could ever, you know, run again, just run again. >> reporter: he underwent four months of rehabilitation at the washington medical center and slowly got back on the field. >>it's been less than two years since the accident, and not only is charlie davies back on the field, he's leading

uninterested in troy davis and that's the u.s. media despite the fact that davis has been fighting for his life since the early ninety's the mainstream media has consistently turned a blind eye to his case. the injustices of our judicial system in general so if more people knew about davis's case they could have stood up for me or at least raise awareness about the judge who sentenced him to death only on faulty eyewitness testimony but all those years they didn't do it and now it could be too late for troy davis. i think that it's safe to say that jesus christ may be the most depicted individual of all time throughout the centuries the artistic version est roughly the same he's skinny he's gentle sad and kind but there's a growing movement both here in the u.s. and of the u.k. to change that to make jesus more macho more tough one ours has even taken it as far as creating paintings where jesus as a tattooed biker and a boxer so what do you make of this movement is it just another way to make relation sexy to try and sell it to mo

the execution for troy davis is set for wednesday. this is the fourth time he has faced a scheduled execution. the issue now is before the state board of pardons and paroles. they will take it up on monday. davis, you may remember, is convicted of killing an off duty savannah police officer back in 1989 approximately that officer is mark mcfail. mcfail had gone to help a homeless man who was being beaten. seven of the nine witnesses at trial have now recanted some of their testimony. they say they were coerced into testifying against troy davis. the former prosecutor, however, says davis is guilty. >> i'm just disappointed that so many people have been led to believe that nobody has paid attention to these recantations. it is, as i explained earlier, simply not the case. it is not the case. and on what ground are the recantations more believable than the testimony in court? none. none. ♪ just lost tonight, lord >> that's just one performance last night, a vigil was held for davis there. this is ebenezer baptist, where reverend marti

davis's case and mr. buck's case and countless other cases have demonstrated is that the death penalty is not applied, is not issued, is not rigorously looked at in a fair and even- handed way. and the barriers to that fairness, prosecutorial misconduct, police misconduct, abuse of discretion by prosecutors and judges and racial discrimination as well as discrimination in terms of poverty and resources have really undermined the fundamental fairness i think we can all demand from our criminal justice system snarls charles simpson, he mentioned fairness. does that change the nature of this debate or is this the debate we've been having for a while? >> we've been having this debate, gwen, and polling this issue since 1936. support for the death penalty has been universally high. recently 64% of americans in the latest gallup poll support the use of the death penalty. i agree with my friend vince in the sense that when a state-- and 4 states have the death penalty-- decides to offer the ultimate penalty for

and ordered -- said that davis was guilty. but in a case with no dna and in a case with -- just based on eyewitness testimony, with this much uncertainty, it's really a chilling thought to think he may be executed. >> do you think it could be postponed again? >> you know, it really seems like they're close to out of options this time. there's a hearing on monday. the execution is scheduled for wednesday. the board of pardons has a hearing but the board of pardons in georgia has never stepped in on the case before and i don't think they're going to step in again. i don't doubt that his lawyers, who are incredibly determined, will try some last-minute gestures with the district court, court of appeals, supreme court, but this may be it. >> the burden on him is to prove innocence, not reasonable doubt? >> that's right. the courts -- one of the curious facts about our law is that, the supreme court has never said it is unconstitutional to execute an innocent person. you would think they would have, but they've never held that. the

absolutely i do think that should bother us you know in the court case of troy davis his. execution has been rescheduled four different times apparently he has exhausted all of his appeal options and it's unbelievable to me that a case like this could even occur and i believe that we have hundreds if not thousands of inmates right now in the united states who are probably innocent but you know of are not getting their fair treatment in our justice system and i think it's ridiculous because we waste our resources on imprisoning innocent people and i think it shows you that what we have in the united states and possibly in other countries is that we want justice and we want justice so bad that we're willing to lock someone up just to say that someone is paying for a crime even if we don't have the necessary evidence to prove that that person is guilty for the crime that was committed and i think that's the case with troy davis and you know just to be clear i'm not saying that we should let troy davis go but i do believe that since there is new evidence suggesting that his co

galvanized by the death of a man named troy davis. last night, he was executed amid cries for mercy and his own fervent declarations. abc's legal expert dan abrams will be here to give us the big picture in just a moment. but first, our steve osunsami takes us through the dramatic events of the past 24 hours. >> reporter: troy davis' supporters are still anguished today that their screams for mercy went unanswered. that a man they believe is innocent was killed. and nervous police officers called for reinforcement. >> i think it's tragic that the police officer died but i think it's even more tragic that this man who could be innocent was executed. >> reporter: davis admitted he was there that day in 1989 when someone was trying to steal beer from a homeless man in savannah. offduty police officer mark macphail tried to break up the fight and was shot and killed. overnight, davis declined a sedative and in clear mind, just moment before he was executed, he looked into the eyes of macphail's family and swore he didn't do it. >> to the

troy davis, a convicted cop killer, will die tonight despite this rally and despite assertions of davis' innocence from amnesty international to the pope to president jimmy carter. whether you agree with them or not is up to you. davis' case aside, americans seem increasingly reluctant to put anyone to death. since the 1990s, the numbers declined from 98 executions in 1999 to just 46 last year. that decline seems at odds with the strong feelings many americans still have about the death penalty. witness the republican debate. >> your state has executed 234 death row inmates, more than any other governor in modern times. [ applause ] have you struggled to sleep at night with the idea that any one of those might have been innocent? >> no, sir, i've never struggled with that at all. i think americans understand justice. >> that is texas, but 16 other states do not have the death penalty. as for why juries seem loathe to impose a death sentence? that's unclear. but maybe it's because more than 130 people have been released from death row with evidence of their innocence since 1973. many jur

davis and pastor derek johnson, the man who drove davis on his way to turn himself in more than 20 years ago. i spoke with both of them earlier. >> he's always maintained his innocence. and you know, he told us he was not the one who shot the police officer. and we stand behind that innocence and stand behind his word. >> you know there's another family involved here, the family of the slain officer, mark macphail. his mother spoke with cnn and she's positive that your brother shot her son and a man earlier that same night. so i want you to take a listen to this, and then we'll talk about it. >> i tell you that he shot that guy before and the casings are the same. now, i think those are pretty good evidence. >> justice and closure only comes for you when troy davis is finally executed? >> i will never have closure because that can't be. but i may have some peace which i hope for. i certainly need it. >> timably, do you understand how the macphails feel? >> i do understand how they feel and my heart goes out to them because you know, my brother, he is innocent. and she said she will not h

troy davis was convicted of killing a policeman in 1989. many witnesses have since changed or recanted their testimony, raising doubts over his guilt. i will switch over to washington, where jane o'brien is following this. any idea how long this delay will be? >> everybody is waiting. a lot of troy davis supporters say it this alone amounts to cruel and inhuman treatment -- treatment. as we understand it, two hours ago, he would have been strapped to the gurney. in the bill would have been inserted into his arm, ready for the lethal injection. to all appearances, that is where he is right now, working for the supreme court to decide whether to stay his execution. lots of people gathering outside the high security prison where he is being held. we've seen activity in the last few minutes, heavily armed police numbers increasing. a lot of police vehicles with flashing lights, moving into the area. it could just mean the police presence is being built up because of a number of protesters and the heightened state of emotion. or it could be in r

you couldn't stop troy davis's execution by just protesting troy davis's execution. the only way to stop troy davis's execution is to stop all executio executions. if you're outraged at troy davis's execution but weren't bothered by derrick o'neal mason's execution tonight in alabama, weren't moved to protest the execution of lawrence russell brewer last night, then you're sure, you are absolutely sure to find yourself outraged and protesting another execution. maybe not for another year or two. but surely another one will come along where you're convinced that the condemned man or woman is actually innocent or at least had a grocery unfair trial that leaves any reasonable person with reasonable doubt about the guilt of the person to be executed. if you save your outrage for that execution, if that's the next one you're going to protest, then you will probably have troy davis deja vu. the time to fight that next unjust execution that's going to happen in the next year or two is right now. ♪ ♪ [ dog barks ] [ birds chirping ] ♪ [ mechanical breathing ] [ engine

and the man, troy davis. that so many have worked so hard to keep alive was dead. >> the execution was carried out. troy davis was pronounced dead at 11:08 p.m. local time. less than an hour ago. have we heard from troy davis' family? >> we have not heard from his family this evening. we did hear from reporters who were inside the viewing room as the execution took place. they were talking about how troy davis spoke rather louisedly and quickly, when he was offered the opportunity to make a statement. he spoke directly to the family of the slain police officer. the man he was convicted to death for killing. he looked directly at them and told them he was not responsible for that death. and that he was an innocent man. a powerful moment, and yet the observers there say that the macphail family, when it was over seemed to find some relief and some peace in his execution. there were no statements from either of the families when it was over. and now, again, so many of davis' support hes that were here left quiet

and let's say troy davis did it. let's say that we're wrong, that he has been a very good actor for all of these years, that these witnesses for reasons we can never understand are now lying when they were telling the truth earlier, let's say he did it. well, he would not be any threat to public safety if he remains in prison. >> that's true. >> why not let him stay behind bars, and that would give us more years to sort things out. who knows. >> i've go to the-to-interrupt you. thank you. we're going to stay on top of this case. cynthia tucker, thanks so much for taking time to be with us tonight. we'll be right back. [ male announcer ] where exactly is your road to happiness? ♪ on a beach? on a mountain? or wherever you happen to be... the first step on that road may well be... a bowl of soup. delicious campbell's soups fill you with vegetable nutrition, farm-grown ingredients, energy, and can help you keep a healthy weight. putting you on the road to happiness. bon voyage. campbell's -- it's amazing what soup can

davis' appeals were rejected. the supreme court refused to grant him a retrial because of procedural reasons. the doubt that plagues his conviction led three jurors from his original trial, three jurors, to urge the board not to execute troy davis, public figures, world leaders and hundreds of thousands have demanded clemency, but the board has made its decision to execute troy davis. he's scheduled to die, die in a little over 24 hours. he's declined his special last meal. many of us will be there in prayer. i will join them tomorrow in johnson, georgia. this is america's justice system, but is it justice? joining me now reverend dr. rafael womack, senior pastor at the ebenezer baptist church, spiritual home of dr. martin luther king. you and i visited troy on death row several years ago. i remember we got within an hour of his execution that time, and it was stopped. i stood there with his mother. this time he has run out of where he can go, according to all that we know. is there anything that can block this ex

as protesters chant injustice the clock ticking down to the execution of troy davis so in the eleventh hour will be us murder a potentially innocent man and what is due to the u.s. his ability to lecture on the more rally to the rest of the world. good evening it's wednesday september twenty first four pm here in washington d.c. i'm lauren lyster and you're watching our t.v. . now we begin today with our coverage of the sixty six you know. good nations general assembly and this morning we heard from u.s. president barack obama who in the midst of us wars in afghanistan and iraq but more specific to obama the nato combat mission in libya which he greenlighted for the u.s. he talked a lot about peace pursuit of peace peace is more than just the absence of war a lasting peace. he says hurt people can live in sustained freedom. and security even as we proclaim our love for peace and our hatred of war. he says hard this is hard now when talking about conflicts in the arab world he urged sanctions for syria taking a tough stance well he took a much more cautious approach to u.s. allies yemen

and ordered -- said that davis was guilty. but, in a case with no dna and in a case with just based on eyewitness testimony, with this much uncertainty, it's really a chilling thought to think he may be executed. >> do you think it could be postponed again? >> you know, it really seems like they're close tout of option this is time. there's a hearing on monday. the execution is scheduled for wednesday. the board of pardons has a hearing but the board of pardons in georgia has never stepped in on the case before and i don't think they're going to step in again. i don't doubt his lawyers, who are incredibly determined, will try some last minute gestures with the district court, court of appeals or supreme court, but this may be it. >> the burden is to prove innocence, not reasonable doubt? >> that's right. the courts -- one of the curious facts about our law is that, the supreme court is never said it is unconstitutional to execute an innocent person. you would think they would have but they've never held that. they say, if you

now and i are going to talk about the case of troy davis whose last ditch try for clemency was denied today by the georgia board of paroles and pardons so tomorrow a man whose guilt is still in question will more than likely be executed then the unemployment crisis in america has caused the underground economy to grow and what is the underground economy anyway sarah jaffe is going to explain it for us and it looks like the u.s. to shopping around for someone to build a massive new prison for the not ganna stand and all this time i thought we're broke we're going to have all of that morphy tonight including a dose of happy hour but first take a look at the mainstream media has decided to miss. well today the made stream media continue to turn into entertainment tonight and yeah i know i called him out for doing the exact same thing last friday when they were reporting on countdown to the emmys and silver commenters actually tried to defend them because they said it's friday apparently people want to know which movies that award shows they should watch over the weekend you know i still

davis is for the state board of pardons and pa rolls to grant clemency. it's the last resort in georgia, not the governor, but the board of pardons and pa rolls. i wrote a letter to them. many, many ear republicans ands alike have written letters. we'll just have to see if they understand what the courts thus far have not understood, and that is there is not sufficient evidence of culpability here. >> they will have their hearing on monday. i have supported mr. davis, have met with him on death row, but i also say, and i'm sure you will agree, the family of this policeman deserves justice, just like mr. davis does, but giving the family of this policeman justice is not making the wrong person pay for the killing of their loved one. >> no, that's simply makes a very bad and tragic situation even more tragic, reverend. >> thank you, former congressman bob board. thank you for your time. we'll be staying on this story through next monday. up next, john mccain's exit strategy for iraq -- stay longer and with more troops. we'll be right back. [ male announcer

and support for clemency for davis spread internationally. from former fbi director william sessions to pope benedict xvi. many, many people believed there was just too much doubt here to put a man to death. for her part, the mother of the murder victim said she wanted closure. >> i have been through hell. especially the last couple of years when everything was kind of building up and we had to go to court again and again. so i need some peace. >> courts rejected davis' pleas, including at the 11th hour tonight, the u.s. supreme court. troy davis was 42 years old and he is the 35th person to be executed in the united states this year. >>> we turn now to a murder trial in progress in florida where the defense today began its efforts to convince a jury that a millionaire developer did not murder his wife. he admits to having shot her. he told the 911 operator as much. but he says it was an accident. here's ashleigh banfield. >> diane killed herself tonight. >> reporter: blunt and to the point. a florida millionaire calls his lawyer with some sh

for davis, the campaign ran into the final hours. davis had high profile list of supporters, including big boi of the group outkast. and quest love of the roots. also, backing his clemency request were former president jimmy carter and the pope. >> it's hard to believe that many witnesses came forward and said, look, police coerced us into saying this guy did it. how someone would not have said, let's put on the brakes -- see if we can do something. hard to believe. >> it's hard to believe there wasn't enough doubt there that you wouldn't want to go forward until you were 100% certain. >> to take someone's life. we asked the white house to chime in. they said they didn't want to make a comment. this is a state's issue. we're going to leave it at that. >> a lot of outspoken celebrities have taken to twitter about this case. celebrities have taken to twitter about this case. a lo peore t death penaltyte i forure.it age & >>> in related news as john hendren reported just a second ago, texas also carried out a death sentence last night.

in the troy davis case, they did have such a hearing. there's questions about what the defense attorneys did there, but in many, many other cases, it's become process about process. and procedure about procedure, rather than getting to the truth that's at the core of the matter. and unfortunately, procedure can be a way to get us to truth. it also can be a enemy of truth. what we've seen with the opinions in a case like this where with all the ups and downs to the supreme court and back again, so much of what's in those opinions is about process, not about what happened in that burger king parking lot and that's wrong. >> thank you. >> thank you. >>> governor perry, texas, topping a florida poll, but mitt r romney appears to have a better chance at beating president obama. jim acosta live in wororlando w today's political ticker and then that bus sized satellite. out of gas, hurdling towards earth tomorrow. fortunately, there's a lot of blue, a lot of ocean on that globe. what are the odds though this thing could hit land? when should yo

davis has been convicted since 1991. he has gone through the entire justice system up to the supreme court and back down, the state and federal courts, and he has lost at every turn and yet those who have been following his case starting with his own family, have refused to relent. they have continued to push the fact they believe that there is not enough evidence here to warrant an execution of this man. a lot of people have looked at what they've been saying and a lot of people have been compelled to join, at least by signing these petitions and perhaps by joining the demonstrations that have been set up for around the country tonight to get involved in this case, to see if they can influence a state board that's going to meet on monday that will decide if this execution goes forward. and it's going to be a five-member board of pardons and parole here in the state of georgia. those five people will hear from his attorneys on monday and they will decide if this execution will go forward or if perhaps they will commute h

davis? >> oh, i think about five, six years now, at least. >> what was your immediate interest caused by, and when did you make a judgment about his guilt or innocence? >> well, at the very beginning we saw that there were eyewitnesses to this incident that were taken back to the crime scene, brought all together, a re-enactment was performed. then one witness came in and told everybody elsewhere they were and what she saw. single photographs were shown, so the eyewitness evidence in this case, based on everything we know from the psychology and the hard data, was just fraught with risk. you would never do this. then after that there were seven recantations by witnesses that they were really coerced by the police into making these identifications in the first instance, and then there were admissions by a man named red coles who was one of the alleged witness here, who the defense always alleged that he was the real perpetrator, that he had really committed the crime, and finally, and this ha

shirts and holding signs saying i am troy davis we're all three davis many people tonight speaking out in anger over what they say again could be the execution of an innocent man you got to understand this is a guy who was convicted in one thousand nine hundred eighty nine talk about twenty two years of careers have been built around his case and around other cases and if you pull just one card from that house of cards a lot of very powerful people go down but i want to talk more about the ins and outs of this case michael stark is with the campaigns and the death penalty and joins me now michael a lot of different aspects of this there's no physical evidence there is no d.n.a. and the majority of the jury has now said that there are stories that they gave were not even true it seems to me that reasonable doubt must only apply when it comes to the conviction initially and not the death penalty. well i yeah i mean there's been a labyrinth of people's process but apparently that appeals process you know as hasn't been looking at it in the actual facts because as you said nine of the orig

cnn's gary tuchman has the davis story. the reason so many are calling for his life to be spared. >> it's anything but a routine question. >> how scared of you are possibly being executed? but it's relevant because the man i'm talking to x troy davis, may soon be a dead man. a jury took a few hours to decide he was guilty of murdering a police officer in savannah, georgia. a few more hours to decide on lethal injection. brenda forest was one of the jurors. >> he was definitely guilty. all of the witnesses were able to i.d. him as the person who actually did it. >> there was no dna or physical evidence against davis. the primary he was con viced, witness testimony. the slain police officer's wife trusted the witnesses. >> they were just so adamant about what they saw, when they saw it. >> but this is how the juror feels today. >> if i knew then what i know now, troy davis would not be on death row. the verdict would be not guilty. >> what she knows now is this. almost all of the prosecution star witnesses have changed their

davis was convicted and sentenced to death. but just three days before his scheduled execution, a worldwide cry for clemency, bishop desmond tutu, former president jimmy carter and even pope benedict joined in. davis' many supporters say there is too much doubt for him to die by lethal injection. they point to the fact that seven of the nine witnesses who testified against him have recanted their statements. one of those witnesses said, quote, i told them that troy told me he did it. but it wasn't true. >> you have to be absolutely certain. there are no do-offvers when yo talk about taking a push's life. >> reporter: the defense claims there is little physical evidence, the murder weapon never found. macphail's family says davis is the killer and deserves death. he's been up for execution three times. each one halted. every delay devastating. >> it brought right back up to the forefront and those wounds are just -- they're ripped back open. >> reporter: davis' sister prays for a miracle. >> it is in god's hand. that's the only

kimberly davis and pastor derrick johnson who accompanied him to turn himself in. i spoke with him not long ago. >> caller: i am feeling wonderful and me and my family are holding our heads high. i actually spoke to troy about 4:00 this afternoon and you know, he was just so amazed. like when he called me on thursday, we were talking about the 50,000 petitions that were turned in to the parole board and he had watched the marched yesterday on the news. he said it was so amazing to have so many supporters and he just wants to thank all of his supporters. thank everyone that believes in him and also that believe in justice. >> what has your brother told you about the case, kimberly? >> caller: i'm sorry, i didn't hear you? >> what has he told you about the case? >> caller: well, he's always maintained his innocence and he told us he was not the one that shot the police officer. we stand behind that innocence and stand behind his word. >> even with the shell casings that were found at another crime scene that matched the crime scene from the officer, you still -- he s

no dna evidence links davis to the murder. amnesty international calls the decision by the board unconscionable. it is a momentous day for libya leader mustafa abdel-jalil. he is representing libya at the 65th u.n. general assembly. he has been meeting with president obama the last hour as well as ban ki moon. in a few minutes, president obama will sit down with afghan president happened karzai. this is their first meeting since the u.s. spelled out a plan to leave afghanistan by the end of 2014. today, for the first time, gays and lesbians can openly serve in the united states military. the law known as don't ask, don't tell has been around for 18 years. it officially ended at midnight. since 1993, more than 14,000 servicemen and women were kicked out of the military after they were outed as gay. some want back in but it is not automatic. >> i have talked to people who wanted to go in and they started to make phone calls to recruiters and found out their set of circumstances wouldn't allow it. and there's let down. >> pentago

troy davis died tonight at approximately 11:00, 11:08 p.m. with him died his quest for justice in the truth. >> but the victim's mother believes what so many others doubt -- that troy davis is guilty. >> has justice been served? >> in my mind, yes. in minute mind, it has. it took a long time to get some but it really does in my mind. >> davis drew support from around the world from pope benedict to former president jimmy carter. president obama, he has remained silent on this case. >>> for the first time in more than two years two american hikers convicted of spies in iran, they are tasting freedom this morning. josh fattal and shane bauer went into the arms of relatives after arriving in oman. we witnessed this emotional reunion. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. the long 26-month ordeal finally came to an end. we were on the tarmac last week as the plane arrived carrying josh fatta and shane bauer. josh and shane came running down the stairs, leaping into the arms of their family members and loved ones. tears of joy streaming down th

davis declared his innocence until l the end. he lifted his head from the gournny and told the victim's family they had the wrong man. >> and he said to the prison staff, the ones he said who were going to take my life, he said to them, may god have mercy on your souls and his last words were to them, may god bless your souls. then he put his head back down. the procedure began and about 50 minutes later, it was over. >> davis got the death penalty for killing a savannah police officer in 199 and davis' supporters felt his guilt was thrown in doubt when a majority recanted. >>> protests outside united nations today. the crowd wants an iranian opposition group taken off the state department's list of terror groups. the group is working to overthrow iran's ruling. the european union removed the group from its terror list in 2009. protesters are also angry over the annual u.n. appearance by president ahminedjad. he's expected to speak in about an hour. we'll bring you that speech live to see whether or not he makes some of those unp

president reagan's daughter, patti davis says they're not even close. she joins me next for an exclusive interview. >>> and anthony weiner's internet scandal didn't just damage his own career. it has also damaged his party. the democrats are struggling, struggling to hold on to that seat in a special election tomorrow. the democratic candidate joins me. [ grandpa ] relationships are the basis of everything. [ grandma ] relationships are life... if you don't have that thing that fills your heart and your soul, you're missing that part of your life that just fulfills you. ♪ [ male announcer ] for us at humana, relationships matter too. the better we know you, the better we can help you choose the right medicare plan. that's why humana agents sit down with you to figure out your medicare options. and we have nurses you can call anytime, even at 3 a.m. because when you're on the right humana medicare plan and taking good care of yourself, then you can be there for the people who matter most. [ grandma ] my family is my joy, my hope... they are my heart. i

but this morning, the board denied davis clemency. his family and supporters were devastated. >> when there's doubt, you can't make mistakes, have you to be sure. >> this is an affront to human rights. >> reporter: but the officer's loved ones call it justice. >> not just my father was taken, but the future that he -- that we would have had together was taken from us. and the future that he would have had with his family was taken. >> reporter: for 22 years, davis has maintained his innocence. but now with his legal options exhausted and no possible intervention from the governor, he's scheduled to be executed in a matter of hours. thanh truong, nbc news, atlanta. >>> we learned today the dry weather in texas, the wildfires there have now officially cost that state billions of dollars. more than $5 billion in farm losses, $200 million agriculture losses, tied directly to wildfires, including lost timber, grazing land and livestock. this past weekend texas did get some rain for the first time in a long time in midland, a little more th

the planned execution of troy davis. davis has less than an hour to spend with his family before prison officials start to prepare him for execution. the pardons board rejected this morning's last-minute clemency appeal. the execution is set for 7:00 p.m. tonight. troy davis will have his last meal at 4:00 p.m. at 6:00 p.m., officials will offer him a sedative to calm him before heading into the chamber. davis was sentenced to death for the 1989 murder of offduty police officer mark mcphail. davis has had his execution date delayed three separate times. joining me, the host of the politics nation. can you set the own? what is the mood like there now? >> reporter: well, we are seeing people coming from all over, joining the vigil we call the network. many of us that have been involved in this case for the last couple of years are committed to be here, because we feel that this sets a legal precedent that is even beyond troy davis. you must remember, tamron. troy davis was convicted on nine eyewitness testimonies. seven th

now, the family of officer davis -- the family of the officer troy davis was convicted of killing said the board made the right decision. mark macphail's son who was a baby when his father was killed said justice was served. mcfail's mother says she'll never feel closure, but she may find peace when davis is executed. here is what she said about her son. >> mark was very full of life. he spent years in the military to protect us. he went into the police department to protect us, and that's what he was doing. he loved his children. he loved his family. any chance he had he would come home to be with us all. so he was quite a young man that we all loved dearly. >> despite the decision fwr the board just this morning and the imminent execution, davis' supporters say they're going to keep fighting to save him. a.mnesty international is callig on anyone who has power to stop what they're calling a grave injustice, also the pastor at ebenezer baptist church who prayed with troy davis just last night says he doesn't believe davis is out of options. here's what he told suzanne man sorrow. >> m

president reagan's daughter, patti davis says they're not even close. she joins me next for an exclusive interview. >>> and anthony weiner's internet scandal didn't just damage his own career. it has also damaged his party. the democrats are struggling, struggling to hold on to that seat in a special election tomorrow. the democratic candidate joins me. >>> dueling endorsements today. louisiana republican governor bobby jindal endorsed the front-runner for the republican nomination, rick perry. former minnesota governor tim pawlenty, a former presidential candidate, himself, and "the last word's" former favorite to win the nomination endorsed former massachusetts governor and former presidential campaign loser willard m. romney. but ronald reagan's daughter hasn't endorsed any of them. especially after watching the debate at her father's presidential library. patti davis joins me in an exclusive interview to explain what the current republican presidential candidates don't seem to understand about her father. >>> and nikki haley is in trouble for callin

the same cannot be said for this man, troy davis. he's said to die tonight in georgia at 7:00 eastern time. davis was convicted of killing off duty police officer mark macphail 22 years ago. a crime he maintains he did not commit. despite a global campaign, the state s board of pardons and paroles rejected a request of yesterday's measure of clemency. david mattingly joins now. is there any hope left for troy davis at this hour? >> they felt like that they had their last best shot yesterday with the pardons and parole board. and that board came back and refused to stop this execution. they ask eed them to reconsider. today the board came back again and said, no, we're not going to stop this execution. they also asked to be able to conduct a polygraph test today in prison so that he could prove his innocence by a polygraph test. well, the prison system has denied that request. they do have a new sort of a legal hail mary going on right now. some briefs filed within a court, a state court here in georgia. complaining about issues regar

georgia police officer mark macphail one juror who convicted davis questions her decision he's also insisted he's in a set and there are a lot of disturbing new questions that have been raised in regards to his case we believe that in this particular case. to the contrary to this issue should take your place. and that's right if all goes as planned next wednesday at seven pm davis will be executed but a state of georgia hundreds of petitions have been dropped off the georgia pardons board asking for clemency and here's a man was convicted for the one nine hundred eighty nine murder of an off duty police officer since that time seven of nine of the key witnesses who testified against him have recanted their statements the supreme court has even looked at the case in order to new hearing and this execution date for next week will be his fourth however at the evidentiary hearing the trial judge said the recantations of the witnesses were unreliable so therefore they couldn't prove his innocence to get what happened here they're not reliable enough to prove his innocence but there are c

troy davis insisted he was innocent. the pastor was never told the story to the reporter before was stunned. the d.a. office never interviewed him. you're with this man for four hours and they interviewed you? >> never questioned me. >> reporter: what he said, if he had a weapon, if he admitted to the crime? >> nothing. this is the one case where nobody wanted to know. and i don't think now, looking back, that anybody cared. >> reporter: the pastor is one of many who now believe that troy davis was going to be arrested for murder. as for the savannah police, they have always said their witness interviews were taken properly and no coercion and prosecutors have stood by the conviction. but a number of witnesses sig d affidavited changes their former testimony. she writes y was scared if i didn't cooperate with the detective, they might find a way to have me locked up again. so i told the detective that troy davis was the shooter, even though the truth is i didn't see who thought the officer. the police came and talked to

one juror who convicted davis questions her decision. >> if i knew then what i know now, troy davis would not be on death row. >> reporter: with only a week to his execution, critics of the case against davis include 51 members of congress, the vatican, and former president jimmy carter. >> we believe that in this particular case there is enough evidence to the contrary to prevent this execution taking place. >> reporter: an online petition supporting clemency for davis exceeded 200,000 signatures in five days. but state and federal courts have all upheld davis' conviction. the former d.a. who prosecuted davis says the courts got it right. >> i'm just disappointed that so many people have been led to believe that nobody has paid attention to these recantations. it is as i explained earlier, simply not the case. it's just not the case. and on what ground are the recantations more believable than the testimony in court? none. none. >> here to weigh in, naacp president ben jealous and legal analyst sunny hostin. is this the end of the road for troy davis? what should his legal team be doing