The Georgia Supreme Court held that it would have to be convinced, beyond a reasonable doubt, by saying:
In March, a sharply divided Georgia Supreme Court rejected a request for a new trial by a 4-to-3 margin. The majority said it needed to be convinced without a doubt that the original testimonies were “the purest fabrication.”
[as quoted in the Boston Globe editorial, URL above]
This standard is so high, and the reliability of these witnesses proving so low, that executing Davis is troubling to many in the larger legal community.
Anyway, to view the USSCT dockets so far:
http://origin.www.supremecourt…
Stay of Execution granted 90 minutes before the scheduled execution
http://origin.www.supremecourt…
Writ of Certiorari under consideration, stay extended.
On this one, stay tuned. Where witnesses recant, and one of the witnesses in fact may be the actual murderer, the death penalty is even more troubling than it usually is.
that the death penalty still exists in this country is appalling.