Their hearts have been on hold for 19 years. Now the family of Officer Mark MacPhail must wait some more.

Tuesday was supposed to be the day a horrible chapter in their lives came to a close — as if the memory of a loved one’s tragic death ever goes away. Instead, the U.S. Supreme Court delayed the execution of the man a jury of 12 people sentenced to die for the shooting of Mark MacPhail.

Two hours before Troy Anthony Davis was to receive a lethal injection at the Georgia Diagnostic Center — with the MacPhails already on their way into the prison through a secluded gate — a reporter called and informed them that a stay of execution had been granted.

Annelliese McPhail, the feisty mother of the slain Savannah police officer, waited at her home in Columbus — just as she has since the first call about her son’s death on Aug. 19, 1989.

"I’ll stop smoking again this weekend," she said Tuesday morning, admitting her growing nervousness.

Mark MacPhail Jr. was at the prison, surrounded by aunts, uncles and cousins. He brought no memories. All he brought was the name of a father he was never allowed to know.

"The others have memories," he said. "All I have are some pictures, a video of a MacPhail family reunion and the memories my family shares with me."

Mark was 7 weeks old when his father was taken away. He was asleep in his crib while his father worked security at a downtown bus station to help support his growing family.

His grandmother does have memories.

• Some feature a son who dreamed of being a U.S. Army Ranger like the father who died when Mark was 13.
• Some feature the slap across the face she had to endure when shocking details of her son’s shooting were described in a court of law.
• Some feature the day he married Joan and the happy days when Madison and Mark Jr. were born.
• Some feature the horrible things she has read about her family on the Internet.

"They have made my son sound like the criminal," Mrs. MacPhail said.

Mark and Joan's wedding day in 1986.

On Monday night, her telephone started ringing after 11. The same person kept calling. The calls were from New York, from a stranger. Over and over, Mrs. MacPhail said she didn’t want to talk, but the phone kept ringing.

It has been that way for 19 years. The MacPhails became targets when Troy Anthony Davis graduated from killer to cause. Family members and people who never knew him, claim he is innocent. They ignore facts that came out in the trial and harp on witnesses who have recanted their original testimony.

Hundreds of those people huddled outside the prison in Jackson on Tuesday. A church bus with few vacant seats delivered demonstrators carrying signs supporting Davis. The usual anti-death penalty protesters were joined by people in blue T-shirts that said “I am Troy Davis” — an attempt to remind people that it could be them on Death Row.

To avoid the boisterous crowds, members of the MacPhail family rendezvoused at another exit off I-75. Most of them came from Columbus but others came from Savannah and Atlanta. Representatives of the Fraternal Order of Police provided transportation and support.

Officials from the Department of Corrections escorted the family to that undisclosed gate. They were to go to the warden’s office thought two family members planned to witness the execution.

When word of the delay came, someone had to call Mrs. MacPhail. It was news she did not want to hear but it was news she accepted with amazing strength.

With scores of media representatives there, word of the court decision came to the throngs of protesters. They dispersed to a truck stop across the highway. Reporters gathered around the Davis family. So did the Rev. Al Sharpton and Georgia NAACP President Ed Dubose of Columbus.

Once Sharpton was spotted, people lined up to have their picture taken with him. You would have thought it was Jesse Jackson.

While this was going on, vans carrying the MacPhails passed the truck stop unnoticed. They headed home with a promise to return if the high court reschedules the execution.

The MacPhails: Mark, Joan, Madison and baby Mark Jr.

Back in Annelliese MacPhail’s driveway in Columbus, her daughters updated her on everything that happened.

Her grandson weighed on her mind. He reminds them of his father. He has the same laugh. When she talked with Mark Jr. after the delay, he was inconsolable.

“It’s so sad. He has always asked me ‘What was my Daddy like when he was my age?’ It breaks my heart,” Mrs. MacPhail said.

Over the years, the case has generated support for Davis from unlikely sources — including the Vatican. Recent pleas for clemency came from former Georgia Congressman Bob Barr and President Jimmy Carter.

Carter’s involvement disappoints Mrs. MacPhail. She has visited his Sunday School class in Plains several times and a photograph of Jimmy and Rosalynn hangs in her home.

It may not be there long. She’s thinking about taking it down and sending it back.