Damien Echols in the Neighborhood Imagine sitting in a prison cell for most of your life, innocent of the crime you were accused of committing. Damien Echols is one person who has spent most of his life locked away, even though he is innocent. Getting out of prison guilty or not causes a lot of disturbances that cannot be avoided such as moving into a community to continue life in peace. It is something that will never be completely disregarded, however it is something people in a community should
convicted. Meaning that there is a 99.09292 percent chance that the court system is correct (Hughes). With a strong court system one would think that the chances of getting wrongly accused for a huge crime such as a murder are slim. For Jason Baldwin, Damien Echols, and Jessie Misskelley, they were a part of the 0.027 percent that had their lives taken from them. What causes someone to be wrongly accused? Is it the lack of DNA, the
Damien Echols is found guilty and sentenced to death for the crime of killing three eight-year old boys; for eighteen years he spends his life on Death Row before he is released. Before being placed on Death Row at Varner Super Max Security Unit in Grady, Arkansas and Tucker Max Security Unit, Echols also spent time in Crittenden County Jail for misdemeanor charges he received as minor. While on Death Row Damien explains that it was the guards that he had to watch out for and not the other prisoners
Satanic Panic in the South On the evening of May 5, 1993, three boys from West Memphis, Arkansas, were last seen riding their bikes together. In the early evening, Chris Byers' stepfather, John Mark Byers, reported that his stepson had not come home and he was becoming worried. The police were also notified of two other boys who had been with Chris and were considered missing, Michael Moore, and Stevie Branch. The police and the parents of the missing children searched the neighborhood
Arkansas. The boys were found the next day, hog tied in a wooded area called “Robin Hood Hills”. After the case had been “thoroughly” investigated, the West Memphis Police announced on the news that they had found the murderers, pointing fingers at Damien Echols, Jessie Misskelley and Jason Baldwin, three teenagers who were different from the norm in West Memphis, making it easy for them to be accused. I believe the boys were wrongfully accused of this crime because there is a lack of evidence in the case
the woods brutally beaten and savagely murdered. With little to no evidence to be found, and only hints of some satanic cult influence, the police convicted three “strange” and “outcast” teenage boys, of the murder. These three teenagers were Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin and Jesse Misskelley Jr. Many controversies occurred in the town. Evidence was small and the debate of whether the teens were innocent or guilty was very unclear. In early 1994, all three teenagers were found guilty and put in jail
There are many prisoners sitting in prison today for a crime not committed by them. Sometimes, the law rushes into convictions before getting complete facts. Maybe a small town needed revenge which could lead to a wrong conviction. It could be from “ignorance of the law”. Most are not aware of their rights and what could be said that might falsely incriminate a person. There are also the forced confessions by police who threaten or use scare tactics to get a false confession. Most wrongfully convicted
One topic I have become interested in the last few years are the false confessions of juveniles and how they are treated by the law. My personal experience with this happened when I was thirteen, I was strongly interrogated by police about my father’s drug use and drug trafficking. I could feel them pressuring me and putting words in my mouth. Later that night my father was sent to jail and I was thrown in foster care. I don’t quite remember the statement that I had written it was years ago but I
boys shocked West Memphis Arkansas Stevie branch Christopher byers and Michael Moore second-grade playmates were beaten to death naked tied up in Shallowater.Police arrested three teenagers who were alleged devil worshiping ringleader mean Damien Echols Echols and 16-year-old Jason Baldwin denied involvement but 17-year-old Jessie Misskelley telling authorities they killed the boys Hanson counter in the woods this Kelly who defense attorneys claim has a low IQ now says the confessions workhorse despite
illustration of how easily justice can flip flop and be molded to fit anyone’s game. It is impossible to answer the question of the defendants' guilt or innocence, however it is evident that from Paradise Lost that the teens, Jessie Misskelly, Damien Echols, and Jason Baldwin did not receive a fair, honest trials up to America justice
ritual. By the next day, the police had already found their first suspect Damien Echols and were questioning him. Echols was considered a suspect because of his interest in the Wicca religion and officers investigating the case both thought that the “murders had strong overtones of a cultic sacrifice.” One of the officers said the only person he thought could be capable of committing such a horrible crime was Echols. He was a loner, who had long hair, wore all black and listened to heavy metal
Atria Books, 2002. Lorimer, Lawrence T. "Grolier Encyclopedia of Knowledge." In Capital Punishment, 117. Danbury: Connecticut, 1991. Metallica. Welcome Home (Sanitarium). Comp. James Alan Hetfield, Lars Ulrich Kirk L. Hammett. 1986. Sacks, Ethan. "Damien Echols of West Memphis Three still fights for justice- and exoneration- with his new movie." New York Daily News, 2012: 1-2. Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory. Directed by Joe Berlinger and Bruce Sinofsky. 2011. Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood
explosion, God's ammunition dump, going up in flames of righteousness, Satan storming heaven, his artillery captain, a fiercely grinning fool with red flayed cheeks, Damien by name, never to be Michael Hutchison again. The end is near. Kiss your ass goodbye people, it's time to pay up. Now is the judgment. I am the judge."-Damien Echols, (West Memphis Three Facts). The West memphis three is considered one of the most unfair trials in US history. On May fifth, three eight year old boys came up missing
evidence was collected the day of their discovery, what was recovered was mislabeled and handled incorrectly. The boys were laying in the open elements for 3 hours before they saw any kind of medical examiner (Leveritt 23). Later, three teenagers (Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin and Jessie Misskelley) were tried with only an inaccurate confession (that was later recanted) and uninformed tips from concerned citizens (Robertson 2). They decided to enter Alford guilty pleas after repeat accusations and little
Paradise Lost: an Essay Upon viewing the documentary, “Paradise Lost”, one of my first impressions was a feeling of shock at the hysteria surrounding the case, and how heavily it impacted the trial. Another area of concern was the tenuous (or nonexistent) evidence tying these youths to these horrible murders. The entire essence of the prosecution’s case was a confession of questionable authenticity by Jessie Misskelley, Jr, coupled with a community-based fear of a satanic ritual having occurred
Paradise Lost is the first of three documentaries chronicling the story of the West Memphis Three (Jason Baldwin, Damien Echols and Jessie Misskelly) and the allegations made against them regarding the mutilations and murders of Christopher Byers, Michael Moore and Steven Branch. The film gives an insight into the investigation of the case with a great deal of detail using crime scene footage, court hearings and interviews. Though it may be argued that the making of this film was wrong, I believe
a scenario that aligned with their belief system at the time. Lastly, this paper highlights the influence of the media and celebrity in changing the course for these boys. The satanic cult panic in part contributed to the conviction of Misskelley, Echols and Baldwin. Baldwin himself describes this assumption; “I can see where they might think I was in a cult,” he said, in that 1993 interview, “because I wear Metallica T-shirts.” (Rich, 2013). The article goes on to explain that the crime happened
The Oakland County Child Killer task force didn't determine who murdered four children, but it did lead to a child porn ring being busted. Interestingly, Chris Busch was part of the arrest for the North Fox Island porn ring. Busch was found with eight rolls of undeveloped film that contained disturbing images of children. After being arrested, Busch was bailed out for a mere $1,000. He was never prosecuted, and the Oakland County Child Killer's last victim was abducted three weeks later. Shockingly
Alleged Teen Murders Murderers Turn Into Courageous Warriors On September 24th, in Tulsa Oklahoma, a dead body identified to be Bob Sheldon was found beside the fountain of Oklahoma Park by a witness named S.E Hinton who was taking a stroll in the park. Hinton described the scene to be a as traumatizing sight, especially with having witnessed the puddle of blood that laid beside Sheldon’s lifeless body. On Saturday, September 24th at approximately 2:30am At approximately 2:30 am Saturday, September
in the song and the poem, these three things all connect in a certain way. They connect in the way of love and caring. They connect in a way that shows the desire and the determination anyone can see in a handicapped person’s eyes. In the song by Damien Rice, it seems, that quite possibly someone has fallen in love with someone. It does not have to be what everyone thinks. Love is not just something between two people, this could also be something felt by a father to a daughter, or a mother to a