West Memphis 3 Ordeal Possibly Coming to an End -- Convictions May Be Overturned.

I don't know how many of you guys have followed the case of the West Memphis 3, but I have been following it since the first airing of the Paradise Lost documentary a decade ago.

For those of you that don't know the details, I'll sum them up in as brief of terms as possible.

3 little boys were found bound and killed in a drainage ditch in the Robin Hood Hills area of West Memphis, Arkansas around 13 years ago. A short time after that, Jason Baldwin, Damien Echols and Jesse Misskelley were arrested and charged with the crime based off of a confession by Jesse Misskelley who has an IQ in the 70 - 80 range. This confession was given after his being exposed to the photographs of the children, given details of how they were found (and the condition of the bodies) and some 12 straight hours of interrogation. (the length of time is disputed by some, so is in no way concrete). While there was no concrete evidence (aside from the possibly coerced confession), the three boys were convicted of the crime and have now been in prison for over 12 years. The majority of the prosecutions case revolved around the fact that the teens listened to Metallica and dressed in all black in combination with Damien Echols interest in the Wiccan religion.

Since that time, there have been many points of contention brought up by the defense teams and by others that have followed the case that have pointed to others who were more likely to have committed the crime. However, even with the flimsy evidence and the other factors, their appeals have always been denied.

However, in the last few months DNA evidence has come to light that shows absolutely no link to the West Memphis 3. However, they did find DNA evidence on the children that belonged to the step-father of one of the boys.

As of today, this is posted on the official West Memphis 3 support site.

In short, DNA testing has been conducted on dozens of pieces of evidence. The DNA results show no link whatsoever to Damien Echols, Jessie Misskelley or Jason Baldwin – and all of the experts agree that, under the prosecution theory of how the crime was committed, their DNA would be present at the crime scene if they were guilty. Instead, the DNA results match Terry Hobbs, the step-father of one of the victims. Our new filing also includes strong evidence from Pam Hobbs (the ex-wife of Terry Hobbs and the mother of one of the victims) implicating her former husband in the murders.

With a bit of luck, and a FAIR trial, the West Memphis 3 may finally be released.

It is also listed on the site that there will be a webcast press conference on November 1st at 11:00AM eastern time. Those of you who have followed this case may want to watch it.



For those of you who are interested in the case, you can read up on it at www.wm3.org....

Maybe these guys, and the families of the victims, can finally get some real justice.

Further information can be gained from the films "Paradise Lost" and "Paradise Lost 2 - Revelations".


Free the West Memphis 3!
Jasn

How did I miss this one? I think any young person who heard about this case could relate to the three kids. I think Sage Francis can sum this up the best..

Justice is the whim of a judge, check his chest density.
It leaves much room for error, and the rest left to destiny.
The West Memphis 3 lost paradise,
It's death penalty vs. suicidal tendencies.


Good news all around. Good find, man.

reply to post by DeadFlagBlues


Indeed. It seems that ATS is the only community on the web that does NOT follow this case hahaha. I find that funny since the case is full of "ats style" subject matter.


Jasn