Imagine yourself standing silently in an enclosed room.
A few feet away, a man is tightly strapped to a sanitized gurney facing the dim, white light above as armed guards and a physician stand watch.
A small cadre of pensive journalists join the man’s family and other interested parties watching yards away though a glass partition.
He may not be the same age or from the same background as you. He may not share common education or values, but he does share the commonality of humanity.
He is someone’s child, father or lover. He may even be outfitted in the same Adidas shoes you have worn as he embarks on his fateful journey.
Now look deep into his eyes and imagine at your finger tips the lever or button that will release a cocktail so potent it will permanently banish him from existence.
Imagine, if you can, that this savage power and incomparable responsibility fell solely on your shoulders.
How certain would you have to be of his guilt to send this man into his final slumber? What evidence of his monstrosity could be conclusive enough to justify this most conclusive punishment?
It appears for the state of Georgia a few flaky eyewitnesses will suffice.
Troy Davis, a former Georgia death row inmate, exhausted his last appeal and, by the time you read this, exists only in memory after being killed by the state of Georgia on Wednesday night.
Davis was convicted for the 1989 murder of off-duty Savannah policeman Mark MacPhail, and despite overwhelming evidence calling to question Davis’ guilt, a battery of appeals and years of delay have failed to save his life.
MacPhail’s prosecutors failed to produce forensic evidence, so his prosecution is based primarily on the account of nine eyewitnesses who told a jury MacPhail was killed by Davis.
Since then, seven eyewitnesses have recanted their claims, and some have gone so far as to claim their statements were improperly influenced by authorities.
This has been a long and now public fight, yet the state of Georgia insisted on killing the man even though his prosecution has been rendered inadequate by recanted testimony.
No matter how slim, tangible doubt exists.
There is reason, no matter how small, to believe the state government of Georgia is responsible for murder.
Blood could be on their hands. I say “could” because there is no way to know with absolute certainty.
Troy Davis says he’s innocent. I’m skeptical.
The state of Georgia says he is guilty. Again, I’m skeptical.
That raises a daunting question for death penalty advocates — can you ever be sure enough?
The standard of certainty is “beyond reasonable doubt,” but it seems that standard is not always followed, and the thought of dealing death is not given the gravity it deserves from the public.
This is evidenced by the most recent Tea Party debate, when Texas Congressman Ron Paul was asked if he’d let a terminally ill patient without health insurance die. The question was met with cheers from the mob attending the debate. Texas Gov. Rick Perry, whose state also executed someone Wednesday, is also often applauded for his state’s role as an eager executioner.
Although we have evolved from the Middle Ages, it appears, especially in southern states, this free enterprise execution policy is the norm.
It’s absolutely primitive that our bloodlust has become so insatiable that we ignore glimmering doubt when issuing this heaviest of punishments.
Why do we as a civilization insist on killing people when there is even the slimmest chance they may not deserve such treatment?
I’m no fan of biblical “eye for an eye” punishment, but some among us are so evil they forfeit their right to live.
But in the presence of doubt, governments should err on the side of caution so as not to become murderous in the name of justice.
Justice, it seems, is another victim of this situation. Troy Davis may be dead. He may be guilty, or he may be innocent. Either way, doubt remains and justice is left wanting.
 
Xerxes A. Wilson is a 22-year-old mass communication senior from Lucedale, Miss. Follow him on Twitter @Ber_xerxes.
 
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Contact Xerxes Wilson at [email protected]