Hat tip to Gallia Watch
Last week I wrote about the execution of Troy Davis in Georgia and noted the sparse attention given to the execution of one of the murderers of James Byrd in Texas. The Georgia execution drew protests, not only in Georgia, but in Europe as well. Below is a comment in France about both executions, courtesy of Gallia Watch, which also provided the French translation to the original comment by Mr. Yves Daoudal.
http://galliawatch.blogspot.com/2011/09/double-standard.html#links
What the French observers may have missed is that in Texas, the system worked extremely well, notwithstanding the demand that Texas prosecute for hate crime violation in the case of the Byrd murder. In that instance, the black and white communities came together as one in Jasper, the town where the crime was committed. When Jesse Jackson came to town to do his thing, the black leaders politely told him to go home because his services were not needed. Yet, that execution drew relatively sparse attention when it should have been shouted from the rooftops that justice had been done.
Amazing how two murder cases are judged by different standards.
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Sparse attention was given to the execution of James Byrd because there was no doubt about his guilt, and nobody outside of some obscure klavern behind a honky-tonk somewhere saw any extenuating circumstances.
In Troy Davis's case, while he may be guilty, there was sufficient doubt to infer that maybe an irreversible measure (you can't release an executed man) should be held in abeyance.
It's never news when the system works well. But it doesn't always work well in Texas. For instance, Cameron Todd Willingham was executed on the basis of what can only be called "junk science." While extensive post-conviction tests don't PROVE him innocent, they removed all evidence upon which the conviction was based. No jury presented with the remaining evidence could convict him.
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