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Troy Davis in spotlight again as execution nears

It’s the fourth time Davis’ execution has been scheduled in four years

By Greg Bluestein
The Associated Press

ATLANTA — Hundreds of thousands of people are rallying behind death row inmate Troy Davis — not just because they oppose capital punishment but because they believe Georgia could put an innocent man to death.

Davis was found guilty of the 1989 murder of off-duty Savannah Officer Mark MacPhail, but doubts about eyewitness testimony have attracted global interest and prompted the U.S. Supreme Court to grant Davis a rare hearing to prove his innocence.

That hearing later found there was no evidence to order a new trial, and prosecutors say there’s no chance Davis is innocent.

But high-profile figures from an ex-president to Pope Benedict XVI say they’re concerned an innocent man could be put to death on Wednesday.

It’s the fourth time Davis’ execution has been scheduled in four years.