Watching the local news tonight, I found that new evidence is being examined in the case of the West Memphis Three. Investigators were at the state crime lab today examining DNA evidence that could potentially lead to a new trial.
If you’re not familiar with the case, three eight year old boys in West Memphis, Arkansas, were found murdered in a wooded area near their homes in May of 1993. Shortly thereafter, three teenagers – Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin and Jessie Misskelley – were arrested and charged with the crime, and later convicted and sent to prison. Baldwin and Misskelley received life, while Echols received the death penalty.
I’ve believed for a long time now that these three were innocent, as have many others. There was almost no legitimate evidence that pointed to these boys, and there were huge holes in the prosecutions case. And from everything I’ve read and seen, the WMPD appeared to be borderline incompetent. What it came down to, in my opinion, is that this was clearly a heinous crime and the people of West Memphis rightfully wanted justice, not to mention wanting those responsible off the street where they might do this again. With few leads and little hope of finding the killer(s) quickly, the WMPD targeted three disadvantaged kids who were different (all three were from poor trailer-park famililes, Misskelley was mentally challenged, and Echols wore “goth” style clothing at the time and showed an interest in Wicca). The police and prosecutors painted the suspects as “devil worshipers” and created a “satanic panic”, and coming from poor families, they didn’t have the best of representation. With these things working against them, they were convicted the following year.
Two very good documentaries from HBO were aired in the mid- and late-90’s. The Paradise Lost documentaries alone made me question how this could have happened (regardless of their guilt or innocence) and called into serious question their guilt in the first place. Mara Leveritt’s very detailed book Devil’s Knot later convinced me that not only was the investigation, arrest and subsequent trial horribly executed, it also convinced me that these kids were very likely innocent of the crime altogether.
I could be wrong, and they very well could have been involved, despite how unlikely it seems. Regardless, if the DNA evidence gives them a new trial, I hope all involved are significantly more competent than they were 14 years ago. At least one thing is certain – with the help of their supporters at WM3.org, they will at least have some decent lawyers this time around, and that can only help their case.
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