Police arrested thirteen people protesting the execution of Troy Davis outside the White House Wednesday.
One person was arrested for allegedly crossing a barricade while the other 12 were accused of disobeying law enforcement, according to Park Police.
The demonstrators hoped for last-minute intervention from President Barack Obama to stop the execution of Troy Davis in Georgia. After a three-hour delay, he was executed following the U.S. Supreme Court's refusal for a last-minute stay.
Demonstrators held signs that read “Save Troy Davis” and “We Are Troy Davis, I Am Troy Davis.” They paused for a moment of silence -- lifting their fists in the air -- sang, and cheered as fellow protesters were arrested.
Many of the protesters at the rally attend Howard University. About 500 students marched from campus to the White House.
"We think at the very least, a civil rights investigation is justified to establish the true innocence or guilt -- and we believe it's innocence -- of Troy Davis," said student Eugene Puryear.
Howard junior Talibah Arnett, 20, said it was disrespectful that the White House hasn't addressed the issue. Cassandra Bowler, another Howard student, said their protest was about more than Troy Davis. She said it was about the death penalty in 21st century America.
Brandon Harris, the president of the Howard Student Association, told Stone that the protesters did not break any laws.
People are not allowed to hold signs while sitting along the fence at the White House, police told Stone.
Wednesday evening, Davis filed a last-ditch plea asking the U.S. Supreme Court to stop his execution, and Georgia delayed the execution to wait for the court's decision.
After a three-hour delay, Davis was executed by lethal injection after the Supreme Court refused a stay.
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Davis was sentenced to death in Georgia for the killing of an off-duty police officer in 1989. His lawyers today again tried to challenge the evidence that helped convict him, the Associated Press reported. But a judge rejected that appeal. Also rejected was an offer by Davis to take a polygraph test and a request that the pardons board give him one more hearing.
Witnesses placed Davis at the scene of the crime and identified him as the shooter, but several of them have recanted, and some jurors have said they've changed their minds about his guilt.
Amnesty International said almost 1 million people have signed a petition on his behalf. Activisits planned to hold a vigil against the execution at 6 p.m. at Ninth Street and Massachusetts Avenue in northwest D.C.
