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Apr 13, 2008 03:12 am
Edited : Apr 13, 2008 03:15 am |
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On May 5, 1993, the bodies of three 8 year old boys were found lying in a rain run-off ditch near their homes in West Memphis Arkansas.
Their parents, naturally, wanted answers. All the police were able to offer them were shrugs and stares. 31 days later, the WMPD
provided 3 suspects, who were clad in black and wore long hair. Damien Echols, 18 years of age, was a young Pagan who lived strictly
by the "harm none" mantra. He was the supposed ring leader. The other 2, Jason Baldwin and Jessie Misskelley, were high school
sophomores who had not a single homicidal cell in either of their bodies.
Misskelley, having an IQ of only 72, was badgered into an error-filled "confession" without a guardian present. The abbreviated
version that the police provided to a jury, already frenzied by tales of satanism and ritualistic sacrifice, was enough to sway a
verdict of guilt without a single shred of physical evidence being presented in the entire trial. Echols was sentenced to die, Baldwin
and Misskelley would never walk a street again.
Nearly 15 years later, the so-called "West Memphis 3" are seeing a bright light at the end of the tunnel. Thanks to the help of
people such as Johnny Depp, Henry Rollins, Michale Graves and Eddie Vedder, along with countless supporters like you and me, Echols
has been able to afford an attorney that can present new DNA evidence to a court room when the 3 go up for appeal. Along with the
DNA, renowned forensic experts have deemed the "ritualistic mutilations" depicted in the crime scene photographs as the post-mortum
work of wild animals.
John Mark Byers, father of 8 year old Chris Byers, has recently changed his views on the 3. He no longer believes that justice has
been served and wants to help free the 3 men who did not kill his son. He believes another un-named individual should shoulder that
burden. He, too, has been graced with the knowledge of evidence and he says that a black cloud that has hung above his head is "finally
fading away." Byers is not alone, though. Mother of Stevie Branch, Pam Hobbs, no longer believes a word of what used to give her
solace in the darkest days of her life. She now turns to new knowledge to search for a ray of light in an otherwise dark world.
Her son's killer is still free, and what's more is that she knows 3 innocent men are doing his time. But who is he? We can only speculate.
This new DNA evidence will tell what we all want to know. It will tell what some speculate that others ALREADY know. What's more,
it will tell us what WE already know. Damien, Jason & Jessie can all go home and Damien does not have to die. Once the smoke clears
and the dust settles, a new suspect will be revealed and 3 lost souls can finally be put to rest while 3 tortured men can pick up
the pieces that were stripped from their lives.
By mick1138 |
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| Apr 14, 2008 03:44 am |
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| Apr 14, 2008 03:46 am |
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| Check back in a couple days. There should be new developments coming my way soon. =-) |
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| Apr 14, 2008 09:50 pm |
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| Exoneration hearing set for Tomorrow (Tuesday April 15) in Jonesboro Arkansas. The hearing will entail discussions of the DNA evidence found on the bodies and clothing of Stevie Branch, Chris Byers & Michael Moore in May of 1993, along with expert assessments of crime scene photos by forensics pathologists. In 1993, Arkansas did not have access to these types of criminal experts, and so the trial depended solely on uneducated guesses made by the police dept. Please keep these boys in your thoughts as the moment of truth draws near. |
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| Apr 15, 2008 01:33 pm |
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Okay, so the hearing held today with the defense was a brief one and another brick in the road to success. The judge granted the defense 3 more hearings this fall. Damien Echols, Jessie Misskelley, and Jason Baldwin will each have 1 week each to be heard, most likely in September. He also gave the defense team 45 days to file their pleadings and will hear them on August 20 to set a date for the first hearing in the 3 week series.
This seems like good news to me, as next time they go before a judge it will be behind a blanket of evidence that was not available at the original trials. Please keep up as this thing develops and remember, it could easily happen to anyone who dresses in black in a small hick town. |
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| Apr 18, 2008 01:07 pm |
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| no new developments today, but I will keep this thread going until these boys are free |
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| Apr 21, 2008 09:52 am |
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| I live in south africa where gothic people are frowned upon all over the country. To top it all off, i live in a very small "one horse" town. I've been harassed by police more than once, just for walking to the shop. Its crappy. |
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| Apr 23, 2008 06:30 am |
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| Aye samehere. living in a hick town (like severly) if i just walk in someplace in tripps and a black hoodie they stare and follow me, thinking im going to do something. or have a cop slow and watch me as i walk someplace |
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| Apr 23, 2008 06:33 am |
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| And I hope justice will be served. no one should suffer because of a lack of evidence... history has already had that time so there is no need for a Salem-like trial again |
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| Apr 23, 2008 08:32 am |
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| Hi i dont get all news frm all over the world. What happened at salem? |
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| Apr 30, 2008 11:56 pm |
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Salem Massachusetts, there were the "Witch Trials," where social outcasts were "tried" as witches and sentenced to death if they didn't pass impossible tests. It was a way to get non-fundamentalists out of the way.
To bring you up to speed, in May of 1993, 3 8 year old boys were found dead in a ditch in West Memphis, Arkansas. When the police could turn no admissible evidence, they turned to 2 teenage headbangers and their Goth friend. Damien Echols, the goth fellow, was sentenced to die by lethal injection in 1994, but was granted a stay of execution so that he may have a chance to appeal his case.
DNA evidence has surfaced, since, that may clear the 3 boys of their 1993 convictions.
And now, new developments.
An attorney representing Jessie Miskelley was heard today, and he presented a manuscript to the judge depicting the 1993 interrogation that convicted the 3. The manuscript was full of questions that would lead to certain answers, along with many contradictions in Misskelley's story. Having an extremely low IQ, Misskelley was coerced into a "confession" without guardian supervision or being asked to provide proof of the crime. Once he was able to tell the truth, it was too late. He, along with Damien Echols and Jason Baldwin, had already been sentenced.
Justice is on it's way, and it will be a HUGE milestone for all who have taken their freedom for granted.
Thank you all for taking the time to read all this and I hope you all keep up as I reveal new developments as I learn of them. |
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| May 01, 2008 12:29 am |
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| Want to stay up to date without having to keep up with this thread? Join my Sanctum, "Free The West Memphis 3" |
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| May 01, 2008 11:01 pm |
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| May 05, 2008 12:40 am |
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| May 05, 2008 12:49 am |
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| heh im in it!!! :D it helps a lot |
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