troy davis is still alive. his execution on a temporary hold while the united states supreme court decides whether or not to consider the request for a stay of execution. joining us now is nbc news justice correspondent pete williams. pete, thanks very much for joining us tonight. what can you tell us about what is expected from the supreme court? >> well, what's expected is an answer to the question, will you grant the stay or not? it's a simple question and it will get a very simple response whenever the court is ready to do it. it's been about three hours now since the lawyers for troy davis filed their emergency request with the supreme court asking for a stay of execution. what this basically means is the lawyers are telling the supreme or the, look, we intend to appeal the case, but until we do, would you please put a hold on the execution while all of that is in process? it's not an unusual request in these death penalty cases although it does come very close to the time for execution. there is no time l

rejected state of execution for troy davis. back with us from outside the prison in jackson gas zbarks david mattingly, also senior legal analyst jeffrey toobin and bj bernstein, also former prosecutor, a lot of experience in the georgia court, including state superior judge who denied the appeal today. jeff, we just heard the word what do you make of it? >> it's over. the legal system has completed its works after 20 years. i assume he will be executed in the next few minutes. >> take a shot outside the prison, not sure they have heard the news yet. david mattingly, has the crowd heard? this is the scene outside -- >> does not appear that -- >> go ahead, david. >> anderson, the crowd here is very sedate. if they have received word, they are taking it very quietly. it has been very quiet here for about the past half hour and what we are seeing from the crowd across the street here, let's move in first, see if we can get a closer look. there seems to be a lot of communication going on in the group, people moving about now. they

troy davis you believe he is in the execution chamber? >> under georgia procedures, an hour before -- 6:00 p.m. eastern -- he was eligible to be given sedatives infravenously. that would mean the needle was in his harm r arm. certainly by 7:00 the needle would have been in his arm. if they were following the normal procedures. so i guess they are just waiting there. i mean, it's got to be a gruesome, awful scene for all concerned. and including the witnesses which include at least some members of officer mcfail's family. >> and we're going to talk to officer mcfail's mother coming up shortly tonight. jeff, just stay there. david mattingly is on the scene. what is the scene where you are? >> well, anderson, just a couple of hours ago hundreds of supporters for troy davis started massing across the street from the gates of the prison. and they're still out there. i'm going to step out of the way so you can get a look at them. they've been very orderly, they've been peaceful. but they have been very clear in their opinion. they have been sup

>> we are hearing the conference from some quarters of troy davis. -- from some supporters of troy davis. >> he said the incident that night was not my fault. i did not have a gun. that is when he told his friends to continue to fight and look deeper into this case so you can really find the truth. for those about to take my life, may god have mercy on your souls, may god bless your souls. and to the macphail family he said, of course, i did not personally kill your son, father, and brother. i am innocent. >> you have been to an execution. >> supporters and reporters who were present at the execution, relaying to the public the last words of troy davis. we understand that he maintained his innocence to the last, urging the macphail family, the family of the murdered policemen, to dig deeper into the case, that he did not kill their son, brother, their father, and effectively that he died an innocent man. >> ok, jane, thank you very much about the latest, troy davis has been executed. >>> the top story, the palestinian bid for statehood at the un general assembly in new york, and we will

our ongoing coverage of troy anthony davis. joining me now to discuss the legal aspect of this story is lawyer and columnist of the nation magazine,ary melbourne and joining us is barry scheck, cofound ir of "the innocence project." thanks for joining me tonight. >> were there aspects of this case that made it more of an important one for a stay of execution and tonight's result? >> absolutely. one person said there was a change in key eyewitness testimony and one point didn't believe one thing and later believed another and prospects of a dividend suspect. the third aspect we have to hammer and you brought up repeatedly in your interest in justice issues is the racial aspect. the fact whechb yn you look the the death penalty is used in the united states and the way prosecutors pursue these cases, whether deliberate or accidental or direct racial annie mouse, the fact and dad is out there that shows the death penalty is disproportionately used many times against aftermaths. we have to way against other issues. you asked an impo

you've probably heard the name by now, troy davis. he is sitting on georgia's death row, where he's been for the past 20 years, facing his fourth execution order on wednesday but still hope forge mercy. davis was convicted of killing savannah police officer mark mcphail in '89. but several of the witnesses changed their stories, saying police coerced them into lying. david mattingly has more on the case that's attracted international attention. >> reporter: t.j., a death row case that's been going on in the state of georgia now for 20 years, and supporters of death row inmate troy davis are now finding some high-powered help. three times scheduled for execution, three times delayed. and now with all legal appeals exhausted, supporters of convicted cop killer troy davis make a final push for clemency. what makes you think you still have a chance to stop this execution? >> can we be sure that this man is not innocent? can we be sure that the conviction of troy davis back in 1991 is still reliable? and the thing that's so difficult to un

troy davis was killed at 11:08. let's listen in. >> it is john lewis, wsuv radio, basically it went very quietly. the macphail family and friends sat in the first row. the warden read the order, asked if troy davis had anything to say. and davis lifted his head up, looked at that first row, and made a statement in which he said he wanted to talk to the macphail family. he said despite the situation you're in, he was not the one who did it. he said that he was not personally responsible for what happened that night, that he did not have a gun. he said to the family that he was sorry for their loss but also said that he did not take their son, father, brother. he said to them to dig deeper into this case, to find out the truth. he asked his family and friends to keep praying, to keep working and keep the faith and then 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," his last words were to them, "may god bless your souls." then he put hi

davis the state pardons and paroles board shot down a request so well just as calm for troy davis before it's too late and the primary elections haven't even begun republicans are already getting an early start on rigging votes details on why the department of justice is cracking down on texas and what other states are doing to hijack our democracy. you need to know this the clock is ticking down on troy davis this morning a last ditch effort to save him from a lethal injection schedule for fewer than twenty two hours and now davis was denied clemency by a georgia paroles board davis was convicted of murdering a police officer in one thousand nine hundred nine but today nearly all the witnesses who implicated him every canted their testimony and are now claiming someone else committed the murder not only that there has never been any any hard evidence the. a murder weapon or d.n.a. no evidence to tie davis to the murder if there was such a thing as reasonable doubt and this is it yet as of right now he is still slated to die tomorrow over a million people have signed petitions to save da

you couldn't stop troy davis' execution by just protesting troy davis' execution. the only way to stop troy davis' execution is to stop all executions. if you're outraged at troy davis' 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 grossly 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 is now. u want. new splenda® essentials™ no calorie sweetener with b vitamins, the first and only one to help support a healthy metabolism. three smart new ways to sweeten. sa

troy davis' guilt. and in that regard because we are america, we can ill avoid to execute this man. >> can i ask you. this is a difficult question for you but i want to put it to you. do you believe that he's 100% innocent or do you simply believe there is enough doubt about the evidence that led to his conviction that should prevent an execution taking place? >> well, i think that both would be grounds for halting an execution. that is the ultimate punishment. it is irretrievable. most of us are horrified by the notion of someone spending 20 years, 30 years in prison only to be discovered later that they are innocent. imagine taking someone's life. there is no way to correct that. i will say to you that i have spent hours with mr. troy davis over the course of the last few years. he is a man of deep faith. even on monday when i met with him he talked about this being a journey, a spiritual journey for him. he maintains his innocence. as his pastor i believe that. but the question for the criminal justi

troy davis' family is waiting. they know what they're up against here, but they obviously want to take time to get it right, and so we're simply waiting for the justices to act. >> and pete, what if they do grant the stay tonight? what happens next? >> reporter: that's an easy one, ed, what that would basically say is, there's a stay of execution in this case until we, the supreme court, decide whether we're going to take up the case. the lawyers will file briefs for both sides, several weeks would go by, a couple of months, maybe, and then the supreme court would say, okay, we're going to take it. the stay will continue until we decide the case or we're not going to take it, the stay would evaporate, and then the legal impediments would be removed for the state of georgia to proceed with the execution. now, i have to point out, ed, that there are no legal impediments now. the request to the supreme court for a stay doesn't, in fact, or legally stop the state of georgia from carrying out this execution, if it wants

we are just minutes away from the scheduled execution of troy davis but he is still fighting and this as davis files a last ditch plea to the united states supreme court asking to stop his execution and it's not just davis that's hopeful his supporters aren't giving up. big. protests and vigils have been taking place all day all over the world right there that's d.c. but also hong kong and france to give you examples now these protesters are calling for the state of georgia to spare troy davis is life davis as the man believed to be wrongfully convicted davis is a black man found guilty of killing a white police officer in georgia is scheduled to die by lethal injection tonight now this despite a number of appeals calls from amnesty international the pope former president jimmy carter and in davis' case there was no physical evidence that he committed the crime no d.n.a. evidence seven of the nine witnesses in the case recanted five say they were coerced and many of his supporters feel the case of troy davis showcases the unfair justice system in the united states. there's ever to be

troy davis is scheduled to be executed in nine minutes. davis has just filed a final plea, asking the united states supreme court to intervene and stop his execution. people all over the world have come together to condemn this execution as a horrific miscarriage of justice. this afternoon i was at the prison we were almost stopped from conducting a prayer vigil. >> you're not going to stop me no more. just moments ago we saw police at the scene getting ready for a possible disturbance at the prison. joining me now, nbc news correspondent tom trong reporting from outside the prison. tell me what the scene is like now? >> reporter: well, al, i can show you, as we get closer to 7:00, take a look at the show the force. i would imagine this is going to be kind of a preventative measure at this point. you can see the guards and multiple riot police, prepared for any possible outbreak of protesters' violence. and across the street you'll see the show of force of the prot t protesters and supporters for troy davis at this point. they've been gath

troy davis ever since he was convicted 20 years ago. that's right. >> and i think one subject we haven't talked about too much tonight but is inseparable from the subject of the death penalty that is the subject of race. that has about a human theme of the death penalty in the united states. you know, a lot of people think that african-americans are sentenced to death more often than whites are. that is actually statistically not true, but what is true is that people who murder white people are sentenced to death much more often than people who murder black people. and this, of course is an african-american, troy davis, who murder eared white police officer, and blacks who murder whites are statistically sentenced to death most of all. and that's just a significant fact, i think, about the the death penalty. >> roland martin is joining us outside the u.s. supreme court. roland, are there still a lot of people out there? >> well, absolutely. you got about 100 or so people here. they are gathered around listening to broadcasts on their ce

and then troy davis strapped to the gurney. the warden read while we were there read the order from the chatham county judge, asked troy davis if he had any statement. davis made his statement. they ordered the procedure to go on. he asked if he had a prayer first. there was no response. the warden stepped out of the death chamber, then it started. >>. [ inaudible ] >> a member of the medical staff was in there. and also somebody else who was out of our eyesight off to the side. there were two other people in the death chamber with him. one was a medical attendant who was monitoring the thing the whole time, monitoring the lethal injection. and then somebody off to the side. once the procedure was over, two doctors came in, both used stethoscopes, one checked vital signs, eyes, pulse and the like. then they nodded in agreement. that's when the warden pronounced him dead. >> actually this is a highly-publicized case. what was it like to be a witness for this [ inaudible ] >> it was somber. none of these are easy. it was very qui

if we execute troy davis tonight -- and i say we for good reason. these executions are carried out in the public's name, we could well be making another mistake. >> reverend sharpton, i have great respect for your passion. i don't always agree with you, but let me ask you about this case. when you got into this case and sympathized enough to visit with the accused. when you sat down with this fella. i remember "shaw sharon redemption" they say everybody says they're innocent. when he told you he was innocent, what made you believe him? >> what made me believe him was what happened before we went in. we've been accused of jumping into cases without tag our time, so i did a lot of deliberation and had the general counsel do it before i even went in to see troy. when we saw the recanting of seven witnesses. i went to savannah and had a rally. we talked to people on the jury. you had people on the jury that convicted him that said if they knew the ballistics that they were told that was on some of the shells did not match what they were told were troy,

we have heard some chants of "we are troy davis." we have heard some singing, many of them praying now for him and holding signs of support. this case goes took 1989, when davis was arrested for the shootinging death of an off-duty savannah police officer name mark macphail, a husband, son and father of two who was providing security for the a burger king when a fight broke out in the parking lot. officer macphail rushed to the scene to investigate, was shot and killed n two years later in 1991, troy davis was convicted for that murder based on eyewitness testimony but since davis' trial, seven of the nine witnesses against him either recap theed or changed their testimony, raising doubts that have gone global. however, the d.a. in the case and the families -- the victim's family insisted all along that davis got a fair trial deeptd six was the right one with. we are now joined, continue to have the live shot outside the jackson, georgia, prison, continue to show you if we can, maybe naught up on the screen, also the scene outside th

we are talking about the execution of troy anthony davis. joining me is lawyer and columnist of the nation magazine ari mel burn. also joining us on the phone is barry shek, co-founder of the innocence project. ari, are there aspect of this case that made it more of an important one for a stay of execution despite tonight's result? >> absolutely. as several of your guests have pointed out. one aspect was a change in key eyewitness testimony. people who at one point believed one thing and later believed another. another aspect is of course reports, many credible, about the prospect after different suspect. and the third aspect, one we have to hammer here and one i know have you brought up repeat lid in your interest in justice issued, is the racial aspect. when you look at the way the death penalty is used in the united states and when you look at the way prosecutors pursue these cases, whether it is deliberate or accidental, whether it is something that we think comes from a direct racial analyst or other coincidences or juries, the fact and

across the street you see the supporters of troy davis. there are hundreds of them over there carrying signs continuing to chant. a little bit quieter than they were at 7:00, but nonetheless they are making their presence known. over here to the left, we still have the line of police officers in riot gear possibly anticipating some of those demonstrators trying to invade on to the property of the georgia prisoner here. but so far everything remaining peaceful. everything remaining orderly. everything, candy, remaining on hold. >> david mattingly in jackson, georgia for us. he will be there as long as this takes. jeffrey toobin is with us once again. first of all, by my calculation, the supreme court has had this for more than an hour. what do you make of the time frame? >> they've actually had a couple of hours now. the georgia supreme court denied the stay late afternoon and basically at that point troy davis' lawyers hit send on their documents to the supreme court. over an hour before the 7:00 scheduled execution. so they have now had a

it's time to do what we can to for france for cases like that of troy davis he did not need to become a martyr in this cause against the family we need to work on these governors most. horrified look and. we have to give them a clue. tie in requirements for that family or to get rid of it completely life with no parole carol and is one of the states that ari officer often there's no reason for innocent people like troy davis to win to so much doubt they can't believe the supreme court could not step in and at least commute the sentence and the orders for more festive occasions i can't believe it but it's it's it's it's wrong on this rock. i could agree with you more ok to human life especially in a case where there is so much lingering doubt is wrong with the death penalty debate hits on a much more fundamental issue what kind of society do we want to be as i said in the segment last night taking another human life is simply inhumane no matter what the justification for maybe it's a violation of the first law of every human society don't kill other people so when we gave brutally even

his time to do what we can to for fresh more cases like federal troy davis he didn't need to become a martyr in this cause against the family we need to work on these governors most of them now are republican and. we have to get them through. requirements for that penalty or to get rid of it completely life with no parole maryland is one of the states that are you offer set up showing there's no reason for innocent people like troy davis to get so much doubt they think carefully and supreme court could not step in and at least mute the stand and force them or just occasions i can't believe it that it's that this is wrong this is wrong. i could agree with you more hating human life especially in a case where there is so much lingering doubt is wrong but the death penalty to me it's a much more fundamental issue what kind of society and we want to be as i said in the segment last night taking another human life is simply inhumane no matter what the justification for it maybe it's a violation of the first law of every human society don't kill other people so when we behave brutally even

davis theory that troy davis has been executed is dead you are talking the execution was a living away. and i'm happy that this case got the attention that it did that finally made the mainstream media raise the questions that they did the fact that a man who's guilt could not be proven beyond a reasonable doubt but i thought he was executed with the most insane final power of the government holds that scary that should be discussed and the problem here is the troy davis he isn't alone his story isn't a one off story that it's never been seen before that is the mainstream media pick and choose what cases they want to get behind now meantime also while i applaud them for realizing that this story was big it was a horrific example of what's wrong with our justice system i wish that they would do it more often i wish the investigative reporters who devote their time to exposing corrupt prosecutors corrupt cops discredited medical examiners i wish that those people got more airtime on those cable networks i wish the fact that we have the largest known incarceration system in the world and

davis' death the start of a movement to end the death penalty your choices are yes as troy davis said to his executioners may god have mercy on your souls or no there's nothing wrong with the death penalty what a time when dot com let us know what you think the poll would be open until tomorrow morning. coming up with the government running out of cash to pay their bills and republicans planning a vacation next week if the central government shutdown be looming. drives the world the fear mongering used by politicians who makes decisions to break through get through to the main who can you trust no one who is you be you with the global machinery to see where we had a state controlled capitalism it's called satchels when nobody dares to ask we do our tea question more. who's brewed all of us a news coming out of washington speaker that is john boehner has lost control of his caucus last night in a desperate bid to prevent a government shutdown republican leadership brought to the floor a temporary spending bill to keep the government funded through november without a spending bill the g

you need to know this troy davis died last night at eleven o eight pm and dine with him was the legitimacy of our criminal justice system just minutes after the united states supreme court unanimously denied a last minute appeal for a stay of execution davis was stretched strapped into a gurney and wheeled into the death chamber as an eyewitness to the execution noted davis used his final words to once again proclaim his innocence. he wanted to talk to the mckale family and said that despite the situation and he was not the one who did it he said that he was not personally responsible for what happened that night that he did not have a gun he said to the family that he was sorry for their loss but also said that he did not take their son paul their brother. he said to them to get deeper into this case to find out the truth. davis then told his fan david bet then told his family keep the faith and keep working he then had a message for the executioners about to take his life. and then he said to the prison staff the ones he said who are going to take my life he said to them may god have mer

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

well troy davis the prisoner was scheduled to be executed tonight at seven pm in georgia by the u.s. for many believe what for what many believe is a murder that he did not commit a wrongful conviction is what many people think this is reports are coming in that his execution has in fact been delayed as georgia waits for the supreme court to act this after davis filed a last ditch plea at the eleventh hour asking the u.s. supreme court to stop his execution and it's not just davis that's still hopeful his supporters to have been fighting for his life. that they could we were. going to. protests and vigils have been taking place all day all over the world right there you're seeing washington d.c. outside of the white house but protests have been taking place abroad too in places like hong kong and france protesters are calling for the state of georgia to spare troy davis is life davis if you don't know is a black man guilty of killing a white police officer in georgia he's scheduled to be killed by lethal injection as i told you earlier tonight this despite a number of appeals calls f

of troy davis, waiting for a decision from the u.s. supreme court. davis was convicted in 1991 of killing a savannah, georgia, police officer. seven of the nine witnesses recanted their original testimony against him. and three jurors who sentenced him want his life spared. this case has garnered worldwide attention and for more condemnation. for now as the u.s. supreme court considers whether to issue a stay of execution, the georgia department of corrections says, "we are in a delay. there has not been a reprieve issued." joining us now, is nbc's tom trong outside the prison tonight. i understand that as of 7:12 p.m. this evening, people outside the prison started singing, "we shall overcome" hearing that this young man may well have received some kind of reprieve, some kind of stay? >> reporter: yeah, and it's hard to get word and confirmation on the decision at this point, martin. there have been sporadic heres and then moments of silence as people wait to get any type of word on whether this execution is going to move ahead or is going to be fur

we're talking about troy davis. set to die wednesday for the murder of a police officer 20 years ago. most of the witnesses have changed their story. the sister of troy davis is live with us this hour. first, what does it take to be a hero? some say it's your address. we'll discuss the interesting results of a in uh study up next. or just a new word? maybe you want to know more about anatomy, or astronomy. you could master something new, or uncover a hidden talent. there's never been a better time to learn. wait a second... with olay challenge that. new regenerist wrinkle revolution... relaxes the look of wrinkles instantly, and the look of deep wrinkles in 14 days. ready, set, smooth... regenerist. from olay. aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa auto repair. gary... he hung up. ...why do we have so many a's in our name? so we're listed first in the phone book. ya know, gives us an edge. you know fedex can, give us an edge. how? well, fedex ships auto parts from factories around the world, they clear em through customs, and that'll

but the man who prosecuted davis stands by his case. >> there are two troy davis cases. there is the legal case. the case in court. and the public relations case. we have consistently won the case as it's been presented in court. we have consistently lost the case as it's been presented in the public realm on tv and else where. >>> prominent figures from former president jimmy carter to pope benedict have asked georgia to spare davis's life because of doubts about his guilt. >>> president obama and benjamin netanyahu are going to discuss -- mahmood abbas is set to declare palestine a state. president obama will personally press abbas to work for state hood through negotiations with israel. the two meet later this afternoon, and just a few moments ago, president obama spoke to the general assembly. >> peace will not come through statements and resolutions at the united nations. if it were that easy, it would have been accomplished by now. ultimately it's the israelis and the palestinians who must live side by side. ultimately it is the realitilies and the palestinians not

last night at eleven o eight pm eastern time troy davis was executed by the execution it originally been scheduled for seven pm but the supreme court renewed hopes for davis' supporters that it just might not go through with the last minute they delayed the process until they could deliberate whether or not to accept a request to stay the execution at around ten twenty pm a supreme court announce of application for a stay had been denied and there was not a single dissenting vote if you watch our show you know that we've been covering the story for some time but the mainstream media they only picked up on it recently after protesters began gathering in georgia thousands of petitions were sent to the georgia board of pardons and paroles and after world leaders people like the pope and president jimmy carter joined in opposition to davis's execution nonetheless by last night this would become the biggest story in the country and the media did give it wall to wall coverage with of course the exception of fox news i'm expected breaking news this evening as there continues to be no decision f

davis was executed in georgia. >> the court ordered the execution of troy anthony davis has been carried out. >> reporter: according to witnesses, davis' last words were a denial of responsibility for the crime he was convicted of. >> said that he was not personally responsible for what happened that night, that he did not have a gun. he said to the family that he was sorry for their loss but also said that he did not take their son, father, brother. >> reporter: a case that has galvanized communities far beyond the prison gates in georgia. from coast to coast, groups rallied. their message -- spare davis' life. troy davis was convicted and sentenced to death for the 1989 murder of savannah police officer mark mcphail after witnesses testified he shot mcphail. seven of the nine witnesses later recanted their testimony, and no dna evidence links him to the crime. >> it's over. it sounds terrible, but i can finally close this book and hopefully get some peace. >> reporter: after 22 years, officer mac phail's family maintained that he was innocent. >>> last night, writer at large frank rich

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

as protesters chant injustice aquatics down to the execution of troy davis so in the eleventh hour will the u.s. murder a potentially innocent man and what does this mean for the u.s. as ability to lecture the world's a morality. and wasteful government spending from a new president air force base to a mob museum tax payer money is definitely hard work and it does not stop there. good evening it's wednesday september twenty first five pm here in washington d.c. i'm lauren lester and you watch. we begin today with our coverage of the sixty sixth united nations general assembly now this morning we heard from president obama of the u.s. of course who in the midst of u.s. wars in afghanistan and iraq but more specific to obama the nato combat mission in libya that he greenlighted for the u.s. well he talked a lot about peace the pursuit of peace peace is more than just the absence of war a lasting peace. he says heart 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 yes it certainly does seem so presid

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

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 conviction might have been a bad conviction we should retry him we definitely should execute it and you know what amazes me about republicans just one thing that i want to add really quick is that the majority of them are very much supporters of the death penalty and i find it interesting that they are in favor of the government having control over someone's life but they don't believe in the government having control over health care or the education system or social programs it's unbelievable to me of course there's a little bit of hypocrisy that unfortunately we see all the time now you know i want to ask you one other thing here too is that we've seen a lot of people i've seen on twitter all day have seen people writing messages asking for others to call the white house to ask president obama to step in and do something here unfortunately this isn't a case where the when it comes to a state crime or committed in the state that i

when troy davis's execution was delayed last night at 7:00 p.m. eastern in georgia, the state of texas at the exact same time went ahead with killing a prisoner named wlurns lawrence brewer. they killed lawrence brewer for the racist hate crime murder of james byrd in texas in 1998. there was no question as to lawrence brewer's guilt. tonight the state of alabama killed a prisoner named derrick mason for a murder in 1994. the judge who sentenced derrick mason to die lobbied against the execution. the judge saying that he actually ruled incorrectly in the case and mr. mason should not be killed by the state. although there is that controversy over mr. mason's sentence, there is no basic question about derrick mason's guilt. today the state of georgia, about half a day after they killed troy davis, set their next execution date on october 5th for marcus ray johnson for a murder he committed in 1994. marcus ray johnson contends that he had bad legal representation in the trial that got him the death penalty. but here, again, there's no basic question

troy davis was going to be arrested for murder. as for the savannah police, they always said their witness interviews were taken properly and no coersion and prosecutors stood by the conviction but a number of witnesses have signed affidavits changing their initial testimony. a former prison inmate writes -- i was scared if i didn't cooperate with the detective he might find a way of the me locked up again. so i told the detective troy davis was the shooter, even though the truth was i didn't see who shot the officer. another witness writes -- the police came and talked to me and put a lot of pressure on me to say troy did this and made it clear the only way they would leave me alone was if i told them what they wanted to hear. during the trial, davis' attorney tried to convince the jurors that a main named sylvester "red" coles was the killer. we tried to find him to have his say. we talked to family members but couldn't track him down. >> i don't believe red coles the one that killed mark at all. >> reporter: among those that bel

davis was executed in georgia. >> the court-ordered execution of troy anthony davis has been carried out. >> reporter: according to witnesses, davis' last words were a denial of responsibility for the crime he was convicted of. >> he was not personally responsible for what happened that night, that he did not have a gun. he said to the family that he was sorry for their loss but also said that he did not take their son, father, brother. >> reporter: a case that has galvanized communities far beyond the prison gates in georgia, from coast to coast, groups rallied. their message, spare davis' life. troy davis was convicted and sentenced to death for the 1989 murder of savannah police officer mark macphail after witnesses testified davis shot macphail. but seven of the nine witnesses later recanted their testimony. and no dna evidence links him to the crime. >> it's over. it sounds terrible but i can finally close this book and hopefully get some sleep. >> reporter: after 22 years, officer macphail's family and prosecutors have never abandoned their belief that davis deserved the death

her reaction to the fact that troy davis will die tomorrow. david, thanks. >>> also right now the campaign trail and michele bachmann taking part in a round table forum in iowa. rick perry holding a news conference in new york. he is joined by american jewish and israeli leaders. >>> a leading topic will undoubtedly be a litmus test for many jewish voters. this week at the united nations a showdown is looming over palestinian statehood an the u.s. allegiance to israel is being tested. jim acosta is following that from washington. >> reporter: koorm. that's right. texas governor perry is the gop front runner and is expected to talk about the issue, the palestinian statehood request. down the street from the united nations and a day before the president is supposed to speak to the u.n. general assembly and this is interesting politics that we will be watching on several fronts. one is that the texas governor is slamming this process that is about to get underway up at the u.n. in which the palestinians may get a vote on statehood. it is a vote t

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

troy davis was going to be arrested for murder. as for the savannah police, they always said their witness interviews were taken properly and no coersion and prosecutors stood by the conviction but a number of witnesses have signed affidavits changing their initial testimony. a former prison inmate writes -- i was scared if i didn't cooperate with the detective he might find a way of the me locked up again. so i told the detective troy davis was the shooter, even though the truth was i didn't see who shot the officer. another witness writes -- the police came and talked to me and put a lot of pressure on me to say troy did this and made it clear the only way they would leave me alone was if i told them what they wanted to hear. during the trial, davis' attorney tried to convince the jurors that a main named sylvester "red" coles was the killer. we tried to find him to have his say. we talked to family members but couldn't track him down. >> i don't believe red coles the one that killed mark at all. >> reporter: among those that bel