The West Memphis Three
On May 5, 1993 three eight-year-old boys, Michael Moore, Christopher Byers, and Steven Branch, were murdered in West Memphis, Arkansas. Their bodies were found in a man-made stream running through a wooded area known as Robin Hood Hills. All three victims had suffered a great deal prior to death; each had been brutally beaten, and Christopher Byers had also suffered severe lacerations. Two of the boys had died due to drowning, and Christopher Byers had died due to blood loss. There was no physical evidence recovered at the crime scene.
Almost a month passed and the officers of the West Memphis Police Department had yet to make an arrest. They had questioned Damien Echols, a local teenager who outspokenly enjoyed heavy metal and was rarely seen in any color but black, Jason Baldwin, Damien’s best friend and fellow heavy metal fan, and Jessie Misskelley, a friend of both teens who also shared their color and music preferences. The three friends told officers that they knew nothing about the crime except for what they had seen on the news, but because they were considered outsiders in the community, and because of circulating rumors that Damien was a Satanist, the boys were added to the police department’s suspect list.
Jessie Misskelley, who was seventeen and had an IQ of 72 (which is low enough to consider him mentally handicapped), was held and interrogated by the West Memphis Police for over twelve hours. Only the last forty-five minutes of the interrogation were recorded. During the recorded session, Misskelley ‘confessed’ his involvement in the slayings of Christopher Byers, Michael Moore, and Steven Branch. He also implicated Damien Echols and Jason Baldwin. Jessie recanted his statement that evening, claiming that the police had forced him to confess by harassing him and telling him that he failed a lie detector test. Damien, Jason, and Jessie were arrested on June 3, 1993 and charged with three counts of capital murder. Misskelley found out later that he had actually passed the lie detector test, and that the police had used it as a means to get him to tell them what they wanted to hear.
Two separate trial dates were set. The first was for Jessie Misskelley on January 26, 1994. With no physical evidence at his disposal, the prosecutor used Jessie’s coerced confession as the main point of his case against Misskelley. The defense put an expert in coerced confessions on the stand to testify in Jessie’s behalf that the confession had, in fact, been forced, but it was to no avail. Jessie was found guilty of first-degree murder in the death of Michael Moore, and second degree murder in the deaths of Christopher Byers and Steven Branch. He was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole, plus forty years.
The second trial, that of Damien Echols and Jason Baldwin, who would be tried together, began on February 28, 1994. Since there was no physical evidence left at the crime scene, prosecutors introduced items like Anne Rice books found in Damien’s room, Metallica recordings, black T-shirts found in the boys’ closets, and Damien’s journal containing ‘satanic’ poetry.
John Mark Byers, the stepfather of Chris Byers, also took the stand. Less than a week before his house was to be searched by the West Memphis police, he sent a used hunting knife to two filmmakers (who were making a documentary about the case) as a gift. When the filmmakers discovered what they thought to be dried blood on the knife, they sent it to the police to be tested. Upon testing, it was found that the blood on the knife matched both Christopher Byers and John Mark Byers. During his initial interrogation, Byers told police that he had never used the knife. His story changed when he was told that blood had been found on the knife. He then claimed that he had used the knife once to carve some venison. He was told that there was human blood on the knife, and his story changed again. This time he stated that he had cut his thumb while carving the venison. He offered no explanation as to why he had waited so long to inform the officers of such an occurrence.
During his closing arguments, prosecutor John Fogleman had this to say: “Is there anything wrong with wearing black, in and of itself? No. Anything wrong with the heavy metal stuff in and of itself? No. The Book of Shadows, anything wrong with that in and of itself? No. But when you take the all black, sucking blood, the tattoos...” He had summed up his entire case against Damien and Jason in those few simple sentences, but even this was not completely true: None of the witnesses, nor Damien himself ever mentioned sucking blood.
Even with the lack of evidence, the jury found both defendants guilty of first-degree murder in the deaths of Chris Byers, Michael Moore, and Steven Branch. Jason Baldwin was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Damien Echaols was sentence to die by lethal injection.
What has happened to America’s fine justice system? Three innocent boys were murdered and three more innocent men sit in jail convicted of crimes that they did not commit. Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin, and Jessie Misskelley were convicted simply because they were different; they were easy targets. The public wanted an answer, and the police were forced to find one. When there was no physical evidence, murder weapon, motive, or connection to the victims, the prosecution claimed that Satanism was the motive, and used music, books, and clothes to ‘prove’ it.
If this case seems to be of interest, more information can be found at http://www.wm3.org. There are two books written about the case: Devil’s Knot by Mara Leveritt, and Blood of Innocents by Guy Reel and Marc Perrusquia. Two documentaries were also made: Paradise Lost, and Paradise Lost 2: Revelations. These sources offer much more in-depth information about the crimes, the trials, the circumstances, and the convicted.
END OF ARTICLE. Now I rant.
Thinking about this case does two things to me. First, it makes me angry. Second, it makes me more motivated to help in any way that I can. I hope that there are others out there who want to end the injustice committed against Damien, Jason, and Jessie, and find the REAL bastard who killed the three little boys. Any system that allows a sadistic child-murderer to walk free is in desperate need of realignment... I am too bitter to type any more right now...
Almost a month passed and the officers of the West Memphis Police Department had yet to make an arrest. They had questioned Damien Echols, a local teenager who outspokenly enjoyed heavy metal and was rarely seen in any color but black, Jason Baldwin, Damien’s best friend and fellow heavy metal fan, and Jessie Misskelley, a friend of both teens who also shared their color and music preferences. The three friends told officers that they knew nothing about the crime except for what they had seen on the news, but because they were considered outsiders in the community, and because of circulating rumors that Damien was a Satanist, the boys were added to the police department’s suspect list.
Jessie Misskelley, who was seventeen and had an IQ of 72 (which is low enough to consider him mentally handicapped), was held and interrogated by the West Memphis Police for over twelve hours. Only the last forty-five minutes of the interrogation were recorded. During the recorded session, Misskelley ‘confessed’ his involvement in the slayings of Christopher Byers, Michael Moore, and Steven Branch. He also implicated Damien Echols and Jason Baldwin. Jessie recanted his statement that evening, claiming that the police had forced him to confess by harassing him and telling him that he failed a lie detector test. Damien, Jason, and Jessie were arrested on June 3, 1993 and charged with three counts of capital murder. Misskelley found out later that he had actually passed the lie detector test, and that the police had used it as a means to get him to tell them what they wanted to hear.
Two separate trial dates were set. The first was for Jessie Misskelley on January 26, 1994. With no physical evidence at his disposal, the prosecutor used Jessie’s coerced confession as the main point of his case against Misskelley. The defense put an expert in coerced confessions on the stand to testify in Jessie’s behalf that the confession had, in fact, been forced, but it was to no avail. Jessie was found guilty of first-degree murder in the death of Michael Moore, and second degree murder in the deaths of Christopher Byers and Steven Branch. He was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole, plus forty years.
The second trial, that of Damien Echols and Jason Baldwin, who would be tried together, began on February 28, 1994. Since there was no physical evidence left at the crime scene, prosecutors introduced items like Anne Rice books found in Damien’s room, Metallica recordings, black T-shirts found in the boys’ closets, and Damien’s journal containing ‘satanic’ poetry.
John Mark Byers, the stepfather of Chris Byers, also took the stand. Less than a week before his house was to be searched by the West Memphis police, he sent a used hunting knife to two filmmakers (who were making a documentary about the case) as a gift. When the filmmakers discovered what they thought to be dried blood on the knife, they sent it to the police to be tested. Upon testing, it was found that the blood on the knife matched both Christopher Byers and John Mark Byers. During his initial interrogation, Byers told police that he had never used the knife. His story changed when he was told that blood had been found on the knife. He then claimed that he had used the knife once to carve some venison. He was told that there was human blood on the knife, and his story changed again. This time he stated that he had cut his thumb while carving the venison. He offered no explanation as to why he had waited so long to inform the officers of such an occurrence.
During his closing arguments, prosecutor John Fogleman had this to say: “Is there anything wrong with wearing black, in and of itself? No. Anything wrong with the heavy metal stuff in and of itself? No. The Book of Shadows, anything wrong with that in and of itself? No. But when you take the all black, sucking blood, the tattoos...” He had summed up his entire case against Damien and Jason in those few simple sentences, but even this was not completely true: None of the witnesses, nor Damien himself ever mentioned sucking blood.
Even with the lack of evidence, the jury found both defendants guilty of first-degree murder in the deaths of Chris Byers, Michael Moore, and Steven Branch. Jason Baldwin was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Damien Echaols was sentence to die by lethal injection.
What has happened to America’s fine justice system? Three innocent boys were murdered and three more innocent men sit in jail convicted of crimes that they did not commit. Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin, and Jessie Misskelley were convicted simply because they were different; they were easy targets. The public wanted an answer, and the police were forced to find one. When there was no physical evidence, murder weapon, motive, or connection to the victims, the prosecution claimed that Satanism was the motive, and used music, books, and clothes to ‘prove’ it.
If this case seems to be of interest, more information can be found at http://www.wm3.org. There are two books written about the case: Devil’s Knot by Mara Leveritt, and Blood of Innocents by Guy Reel and Marc Perrusquia. Two documentaries were also made: Paradise Lost, and Paradise Lost 2: Revelations. These sources offer much more in-depth information about the crimes, the trials, the circumstances, and the convicted.
END OF ARTICLE. Now I rant.
Thinking about this case does two things to me. First, it makes me angry. Second, it makes me more motivated to help in any way that I can. I hope that there are others out there who want to end the injustice committed against Damien, Jason, and Jessie, and find the REAL bastard who killed the three little boys. Any system that allows a sadistic child-murderer to walk free is in desperate need of realignment... I am too bitter to type any more right now...