Speaking about Echols to The New York Times in 1993, high school teacher Jim Ferguson said, "he's like some wacko cult member.". window.adsContainer = {"positionAfterTitle":{"code":"Article_Desktop_300x250_Middle5_Rel_Newrev","isOrganicUserAd":true,"max_width":336,"max_height":280},"position2":{"code":"Article_Desktop_300x250_After_Title_Rel_Newrev","max_width":336,"max_height":280},"position3":{"code":"Article_Desktop_300x250_Below_Next_Rel_Newrev","max_width":300,"max_height":250},"position4":{"code":"Article_Desktop_300x250_Middle_Rel_Newrev","max_width":300,"max_height":250},"position5":{"code":"Article_Desktop_300x250_Middle1_Rel_Newrev","max_width":300,"max_height":250},"position6":{"code":"Article_Desktop_300x250_Middle2_Rel_Newrev","max_width":336,"max_height":280},"position7":{"code":"Article_Desktop_300x250_Middle3_Rel_Newrev","max_width":300,"max_height":250},"position8":{"code":"Article_Desktop_300x250_Middle4_Rel_Newrev","max_width":300,"max_height":250},"position9":{"code":"Article_Desktop_300x250_Middle5_Rel_Newrev","max_width":336,"max_height":280},"position10":{"code":"Article_Desktop_300x250_Middle6_Rel_Newrev","max_width":336,"max_height":280},"position11":{"code":"Article_Desktop_300x250_Middle7_Rel_Newrev","max_width":336,"max_height":280},"position12":{"code":"Article_Desktop_300x250_Middle8_Rel_Newrev","max_width":336,"max_height":280},"position13":{"code":"Article_Desktop_300x250_Middle9_Rel_Newrev","max_width":336,"max_height":280},"position14":{"code":"Article_Desktop_300x250_Middle10_Rel_Newrev","max_width":336,"max_height":280},"position15":{"code":"Article_Desktop_300x250_Middle11_Rel_Newrev","max_width":336,"max_height":280},"position16":{"code":"Article_Desktop_300x250_Middle12_Rel_Newrev","max_width":336,"max_height":280},"positionTop":{"code":"Article_Desktop_970x250_Header_Rel","isOrganicUserAd":false,"max_width":970,"max_height":250},"positionBottom":{"code":"Article_Desktop_Sidebar_Bottom_Rel_Newrev","isOrganicUserAd":true,"max_width":300,"max_height":600},"positionBottomRight":{"code":"Article_Desktop_300x250_After_Title_Rel_Newrev","isOrganicUserAd":true,"max_width":336,"max_height":280}} eventCategory: event.slot.getSlotElementId(), Police on the case felt that there were cult-like and satanic overtones to the murders. Bike found near the "West Memphis Three" crime scene. Beyond his tales about Misskelley, Baldwin and Echols, Climber claimed to have beaten a police officer, hung a woman and sacrificed a second lady. He was muddy, bleeding, and brushed against the walls, leaving behind blood stains and feces on the walls, stall, and floor. 31 2021, Published 3:16 p.m. It took 18 years, a deep probe into the criminal justice system, and the rallying of a Byers claimed the knife had never even been used, changing his story to say he'd used it to cut deer meat after the presence of blood was found. The hair would tie in with a reported sighting of a "disoriented" man on the night of the boys' disappearance. Echols' legal team has filed a response to the Attorney General's request, where they are asking the court to deny it. The story of the West Memphis Three traces back to 1993, set in the city of West Memphis, Arkansas. reporters on a platform technologically tailored to meet the needs of the modern reader. Echols, Baldwin, and Misskelley were accused of killing three eight-year-old boys: Chris Byers, Stevie Branch, and Michael Moore. Martin molested both of his stepchildren a son and a daughter over four years, serving just three years in the Colorado State Penitentiary. The West Memphis Three were charged with the murder of three boys in 1994. window.googletag.pubads().addEventListener('slotOnload', function(event) { Moore. hitType: 'event', While Morgan, Holland and "Mr. Bojangles" already seem to have more against them than Echols, the police were now focusing solely on the one angle and one suspect, getting Vicki Hutcheson to agree to have her home wired. Their clothing was found tied to sticks implanted into the creek bed, with two pairs of underwear missing. Jul. Who, then, was responsible for the brutal murders and mutilations of three young children? MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) A former Memphis Fire Department emergency medical technician told a Tennessee board Friday that officers impeded patient care by refusing to remove Tyre Nichols ' handcuffs, which would have allowed EMTs to check his vital signs after he was brutally beaten by police. In statements under oath, the three witnesses say that Michael Hobbs told them, "My uncle killed three boys in West Memphis." The friends rode over to Bobby Posey's house, where they learned Christopher had been whipped by his adoptive father, John Mark Byers, and planned to run away. eventCategory: event.slot.getSlotElementId(), hitType: 'event', Explaining why the test may have indicated this, Martin suggested he believed "the father of Steve Branch killed the boys" and that he suspected shoelaces would have been used to tie up the victims, as "logic tells him that the killer would use something already there." Toggle dark mode Despite suspicion eventually falling away from Byers, Jason Baldwin praised the "Paradise Lost" documentaries as essential to their case, telling the "National Podcast of Texas" in 2019 that "The documentary saved my life, saved Damien's life, and saved Jessie's life. It took 18 years, a deep probe into the criminal justice system, and the rallying of a town. 'West Memphis Three' case: John Byers, suspect and stepfather of one of the slain boys, dies in car crash. The time spent to conceal them could have been skipped completely if there was no known relationship to the victims, Clemente told Ruff. Watch: Man connected to 'West Memphis Three' learns evidence connected to the case is missing By Dominique Dillon, FOX13memphis.com July 08, 2021 at 5:53 pm CDT WEST MEMPHIS, Ark. ET. Despite doubt over the way authorities handled the case, as well as a lack of substantial evidence, the West Memphis Three were found guilty. We are one of the worlds fastest growing According to her new story, police had threatened to take her child if she didn't "cooperate." The boys were naked and tied up by their shoelaces. He said the evidence, which he claims city officials previously told him was lost, destroyed or missing, was found intact and organized. Example video title will go here for this video. Undertaking a polygraph, Martin seemingly showed deception when asked, "Do you know what was used to tie up those three boys?" During the trial, Echols blew kisses to the victim's family, a sign taken by many as a sure sign of guilt. "We have no vested interest in trying to withhold any evidence from anyone on either side. While he was on medication that may have affected the outcome, including Xanax, it seems that his suspected involvement in the killings was a complete dead end. But what is the purpose of that? Eventually, three local teenagers, Damien Echols, Jessie Misskelley, and Jason Baldwin, were zeroed in on as the prime suspects. 1:53 Digital Original Motivations For Investigating The West Memphis Case 1:05 Preview Stating that he was "scared of the police," Misskelley confessed to murder. On one occasion after the killings at Robin Hood Hills, he had beaten Pamela so severely that she told the family that she thought her jaw was broken, prompting them to drive to the Hobbs home to confront him. Until 2007, when the discovery of new forensic evidence reopened the case and a new statute permitting post-conviction testing of DNA evidence came about. There is a vast difference between what most Satanists believe Satanism is and the popular perception of Satanism. WebThe West Memphis Three were the first people in West Memphis, Arkansas who were accused of murdering the three young boys. While police initially suspected rape, there was no evidence for it. Tape recorded, Misskelley would claim that "When the boys came up, Damien grabbed one of them, I don't know which one and the other two tried to get Damien to stop, and then me and Jason come out and started grabbing them, started hitting them." The blade had blood on the hinge, and HBO ordered Berlinger and Sinofsky to hand the knife to West Memphis police. At the scene, Steve Jones, assistant juvenile probation officer, openly speculated that Echols was capable of the crime, saying, "it looks like Damien Echols finally killed someone.". Efforts to release the West Memphis Three would be aided in 2003 when Vicki Hutcheson ultimately recanted her testimony, telling the "Arkansas Times" that everything she told police was a lie. It doesn't take much effort to get him to say or do anything at all.". If they thought they could trust the person who was the actual threat, then that person could get close enough to them to control them so that they couldn't run away," retired FBI Supervisory Agent Jim Clemente saysin "The Forgotten West Memphis Three.". YoutubeMugshots of the West Memphis Three. Christopher Byers' father, Rick Murray, was one of the early voices to speak out against the West Memphis Three's convictions, with Pamela Hobbs perhaps becoming the most vocal. Based on the way the boys were tied up hands bound on either side of the body to the same side ankle Clemente theorized the suspect is somebody who works with animal carcasses, a butcher or a hunter., [T]he ligatures are not restraining ligatures. If some stranger who looked very threatening approached these three boys, I think the first reaction of these boys would be to run away, to look for help. The Story Of The West Memphis Teens Wrongfully Imprisoned 18 Years For Satanic Murder. Goths, punks and skaters were in the ascendency, and Middle America was horrified. Based on the new information, the three men asked for an Alford plea, in which the defendant maintains their innocence, but acknowledge that prosecutors have evidence to convict them. Initially a suspect himself amongst some people, John Mark Byers added his voice to those doubts before being killed in a car crash last year. Jessie Misskelley was given two 20 year-sentences on top of life imprisonment, while Jason Baldwin also received life imprisonment. Equally, Pamela's sister Jo Lynn McCaughey saw Hobbs washing clothes, bed linens, and curtains from Steve's room around the time of the killings. Product was successfully added to your shopping cart. Classmates at Weaver Elementary School, the three were active in their Cub Scout troop and responsible enough to be trusted to roam their neighborhood without ga('ads.send', { With the addition of a 10-year suspended sentence, a probation type sentencing which meant if they did anything illegal they would be put back in jail, the West Memphis Three were sentenced to time served. However, it wouldn't only be many of the victims' families who were dissatisfied, with former FBI criminal profiler John E. Douglas saying the killings were likely the work of one individual whose intent was to degrade the victims. Right on the border of Tennessee, West Memphis was a bible belt city unaccustomed to much publicity. The police contended the tapes couldn't confirm this, with interference masking conversations. "We are planning to move ahead and test this evidence using the latest DNA technology available to hopefully identify the real killer(s) of the three children in 1993, and exonerate Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin and Jesse Misskelley.". Terry Hobbs, meanwhile, still believes in the guilt of the West Memphis Three, telling Memphis ABC affiliate WATN in 2019 that "I still believe in my heart that Jessie, Jason, and Damion Echols are responsible for what happened to our children.". Echols, Baldwin, and Misskelley were accused of killing three eight-year-old boys: Chris Byers, Stevie Branch, and Michael Moore. Echols, Baldwin, and Misskelley were accused of killing three eight-year-old boys: Chris Byers, Stevie Branch, and Michael Moore. Who Is The Real Killer Behind The 'West Memphis Three' Murders? So if the West Memphis Three aren't the real killers, who is? The deals disappointed both those who still believed the three guilty and their supporters, with many feeling the bargain made them look guilty. During questioning, Echols mentioned wounds to the genital that one of the victims suffered. With continuing advances in DNA testing, that day may finally be around the corner. All three bodies were immediately removed from the water before the coroner arrived, meaning that they were exposed to sunlight and insects before judgments could be made surrounding rigor mortis and the time of death. LITTLE ROCK, Arkansas After three years of fighting to get new evidence tested for DNA, the state is saying the West Memphis Three petition should be tossed out.