SAVANNAH, GA. — Larry Chisolm, the first black district attorney in Chatham County, Ga., was sitting in his modern, sixth-floor office, tolerating an interview but declining to speak about the problem that he may have to address soon -- the one that could come to define and complicate the rest of his young political career.
It is a problem he inherited. The problem of death row inmate Troy Davis.
Behind Chisolm, a window framed the western flank of this old Southern city, the county seat, offering a clear view of the bus station parking lot where Davis, a black man, allegedly killed an off-duty white police officer in 1989.
In recent years, recantations from key witnesses -- and Davis' inability to win a new trial -- have made the case an international cause celebre, sparking European street demonstrations and calls for a new day in court from former President Carter, a Democrat, and former U.S. Rep. Bob Barr, a Republican.
But now, as Davis' execution looks increasingly likely, the advocates for a new case are turning their attention to Savannah's newly elected prosecutor. The local NAACP chapter is imploring Chisolm to get involved. Carter sent him a letter recently, as did the Congressional Black Caucus.
"It is up to principled leaders like you to take the actions necessary to ensure that flaws are corrected, that wrongs are righted, and that justice prevails over injustice," said the caucus' letter, whose signatories included a Georgia civil rights icon, Democratic Rep. John Lewis.
If Chisolm -- a trim, fastidious 49-year-old with a quiet, measured voice -- was feeling the pressure on a hot Thursday afternoon, he didn't let on.
As to whether he has the power to intervene, he said, smiling, "When you find that out would you let me know?"
Some of Davis' supporters say that Chisolm indeed has the ability to intervene -- and they predict that he will have to make a decision soon. Though Davis has a petition pending before the U.S. Supreme Court, his lawyer, Jason Ewart, admits the filing is "a longshot." An execution date has not been set; the high court could rule on the petition as early as this month.
If, as expected, the petition is denied, observers say that could leave Chisolm with a vexing choice.
He could ask the state parole board to postpone the execution and open a new investigation, as Davis' attorneys have requested. That would be a bold move for a rookie elected official: Both the Georgia Supreme Court and the U.S. 11th Circuit Court of Appeals denied Davis a new trial, in part because courts view recantations as inherently suspect.
