controlthebleeding Posted August 19, 2011 Share Posted August 19, 2011 http://edition.cnn.com/2011/CRIME/08/19/arkansas.child.killings/index.html?hpt=hp_c1 (CNN) -- Three men convicted of killing three West Memphis boys in 1993 could be freed at a court hearing Friday, a person close to the case told CNN.All three of the men -- Damien Echols, Jessie Misskelley Jr. and Jason Baldwin, dubbed the "West Memphis Three" -- are expected to attend the hearing in Jonesboro, Arkansas, Friday. A source close to the case said a deal is in the works where the men can be freed Friday and maintain their innocence. The deal involves a complicated legal maneuver in which the three men would have to acknowledge that the state has evidence it could use to try and convict them. The case has drawn national attention, with actor Johnny Depp and singer Eddie Vedder trying to rally support for the men's release. Presumed guilty: Murder in West Memphis Singers want 'West Memphis 3' released Echols was sentenced to death and Misskelley and Baldwin were given life sentences in the May 1993 slayings of second-graders Steven Branch, Michael Moore and Christopher Byers. The boys' bodies were mutilated and left in a ditch, hogtied with their own shoelaces. Prosecutors argued that the men convicted, teenagers at the time, were driven by satanic ritual and that Echols had been the ringleader. DNA later failed to link the men to the crime, and the state Supreme Court ruled in November that all three could present new evidence to the trial court in an effort to clear them. The DNA tests were conducted between December 2005 and September 2007, according to the Arkansas Supreme Court. The material included hair from a ligature used to bind Moore and a hair recovered from a tree stump near where the bodies were found, court documents said. The hair found in the ligature was consistent with Branch's stepfather, Terry Hobbs, while the hair found on the tree stump was consistent with the DNA of a friend of Hobbs', according to the documents. Police have never considered Hobbs a suspect, and he maintains that he had nothing to do with the murders. finally... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lonesomexloveus Posted August 19, 2011 Share Posted August 19, 2011 it's about damn time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
booyahachieved Posted August 19, 2011 Share Posted August 19, 2011 I'll rejoice when it ACTUALLY happens. Just the way this article was phrased makes me nervous that it could potentially fall through. Particularly this sentence: "The deal involves a complicated legal maneuver in which the three men would have to acknowledge that the state has evidence it could use to try and convict them." I'm sorry... but what evidence would that be? If I'm not mistaken every piece of "evidence" the prosecution had was complete and total BS that didn't even connect back to any of the men that were convicted. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lonesomexloveus Posted August 19, 2011 Share Posted August 19, 2011 oh, you're not mistaken. hopefully this works out for these guys. obviously nothing can make up for all the time they lost in prison, but setting them free would be a start. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
booyahachieved Posted August 19, 2011 Share Posted August 19, 2011 oh, you're not mistaken. hopefully this works out for these guys. obviously nothing can make up for all the time they lost in prison, but setting them free would be a start. I know I'm not. I was being facetious! There's nothing in the world that I would like to see more than for these three men to be set free. I've been following this case since the late 90s. Late one night I flipped passed HBO and caught the beginning of the documentary, Paradise Lost, and I was hooked ever since. Sure, at the time I was just a punk. I didn't really listen to metal music but I sure did wear quite a few black t-shirts and people probably thought I was a little weird. The fact that someone could be railed by the legal system and convicted of a crime that they clearly didn't commit blew my mind. It was probably at that point in my life when I realized that the world isn't all sunshine and lollipops. Even if they were freed at this point how crappy would that be to be released into this world right now? Perhaps they could arrange some kind of spoken word tour or write a book. Who knows. And sadly... it doesn't seem like the real murderer(s) will ever be brought to justice. It's downright sickening. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
preston Posted August 19, 2011 Share Posted August 19, 2011 Hopefully this make a good ending for Paradise 3. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cactusbot Posted August 19, 2011 Share Posted August 19, 2011 Freedom. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lonesomexloveus Posted August 19, 2011 Share Posted August 19, 2011 such a cop out that they had to change their pleas from not guilty to guilty, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bengalimenace Posted August 19, 2011 Share Posted August 19, 2011 Fuck Arkansas for being stupid and never even thinking twice about the actual killers, Terry Hobbs and his friend, who were the only people to be linked by DNA to any of this shit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
booyahachieved Posted August 19, 2011 Share Posted August 19, 2011 such a cop out that they had to change their pleas from not guilty to guilty, though. That's the U.S. legal system for you. http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/west-memphis-three-freed-HBO-documentary-225420 According to local reports, Echols, Baldwin and Misskelley were instructed to gather their belongings on Thursday and have been transported from their cells to Jonesboro, Ark. for Friday's closed door hearing. It is the first time all three have left together and they are not expected to return, say sources. I'm on the edge of my seat right now! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bengalimenace Posted August 19, 2011 Share Posted August 19, 2011 An Alford plea is not a guilty plea... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lonesomexloveus Posted August 19, 2011 Share Posted August 19, 2011 An Alford plea is not a guilty plea... according to everything i've read, it is. you maintain your innocence, but you enter a guilty plea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thedavidescapeplan Posted August 19, 2011 Share Posted August 19, 2011 I am incredibly enthused that they've been set free, but the Alford Plea is bullshit. The reason Arkansas pushed for it was due to the fact that if they acknowledged this possibility of guilt the WM3 won't be able to sue for damages or for wrongful imprisonment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lonesomexloveus Posted August 19, 2011 Share Posted August 19, 2011 from wiki: Alford plea (also called Kennedy plea [1], Alford guilty plea[2][3][4] and Alford doctrine[5][6][7]) in the law of the United States is a guilty plea in criminal court,[8][9][10] where the defendant does not admit the act and asserts innocence.[11][12][13] Under the Alford plea, the defendant admits that sufficient evidence exists with which the prosecution could likely convince a judge or jury to find the defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lonesomexloveus Posted August 19, 2011 Share Posted August 19, 2011 I am incredibly enthused that they've been set free, but the Alford Plea is bullshit. The reason Arkansas pushed for it was due to the fact that if they acknowledged this possibility of guilt the WM3 won't be able to sue for damages or for wrongful imprisonment. yeah. i'm so glad that these men are free, but at the same time, it's such a bittersweet thing because now (barring any bizarre and unlikely circumstances) they will never be truly vindicated legally. judging by what has already taken place there, however, this was probably their best shot at ever seeing the light of day, so i don't blame them for seizing this opportunity. such a gross miscarriage of justice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bengalimenace Posted August 19, 2011 Share Posted August 19, 2011 Damien's reasoning behind the Alford is getting out to work toward a new trial in which all three will be cleared. Once they're cleared they can sue, and will win against, the state for their wrongful arrest, conviction and incarceration. Terry Hobbs. Terry Hobbs. Terry Hobbs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
selfreliable Posted August 20, 2011 Share Posted August 20, 2011 So I saw this statement by Henry and it sums up everything, as usual It is great news that Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin and Jessie Misskelley are getting out of prison. Their release is long overdue and could not come soon enough. There is a person or persons who murdered Stevie Branch, Christopher Byers and Michael Moore who still need to be brought to justice. While I am happy that Damien, Jason and Jessie have been set free, my happiness is tempered by the cost of their freedom, the loss of life and lives and the how poorly justice was served. Thanks to all the people who contributed to the case for so many years, who believed, who never gave up. Henry Rollins Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lonesomexloveus Posted August 20, 2011 Share Posted August 20, 2011 Damien's reasoning behind the Alford is getting out to work toward a new trial in which all three will be cleared. Once they're cleared they can sue, and will win against, the state for their wrongful arrest, conviction and incarceration.Terry Hobbs. Terry Hobbs. Terry Hobbs. i'm pretty sure that part of the plea bargain was that they can't sue the state, because they pleaded guilty. i don't think that they'll get another trial. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
almightyseancore Posted August 20, 2011 Share Posted August 20, 2011 An Alford plea is not a guilty plea... according to everything i've read, it is. you maintain your innocence, but you enter a guilty plea. basically saying, "we know we were wrong, but we still need to be right, or we'll look like dicks. sorry guys." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
raidenradio Posted August 20, 2011 Share Posted August 20, 2011 These dudes should be treated like gods upon their release. I can't imagine having that much of my life taken away from me this retardedness. I'm thinking lifetime passes to concerts by their favorite bands. Hopefully they get mad money from a book deal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lorenspb Posted August 21, 2011 Share Posted August 21, 2011 It's too bad they can't collect any damages, especially cuz it can't be easy to find good jobs and such, but at least this is behind them now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcm1610 Posted August 22, 2011 Share Posted August 22, 2011 They aren't that mom who everyone thinks killed her daughter. They'll find jobs just fine, especially since a lot of people support them. It does suck you can't sue the state for wrongful imprisonment, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lonesomexloveus Posted August 22, 2011 Share Posted August 22, 2011 yeah, they have so many supporters that they're borderline celebrities. if anything, they'll probably be more likely to get a job than an average person because of their ordeal. obviously, that doesn't even begin to make up for the hell they went through in the last 18 years, but it's something. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shenanigans Posted August 22, 2011 Share Posted August 22, 2011 It's too bad they can't collect any damages, especially cuz it can't be easy to find good jobs and such, but at least this is behind them now. Part of the Alford plea is that they maintain their innocence even though they plea guilty. I assume that means, job applications and what not they can put no to the conviction question. I'm sure plenty of people know their case and will happily give them jobs to help them out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lonesomexloveus Posted August 22, 2011 Share Posted August 22, 2011 It's too bad they can't collect any damages, especially cuz it can't be easy to find good jobs and such, but at least this is behind them now. Part of the Alford plea is that they maintain their innocence even though they plea guilty. I assume that means, job applications and what not they can put no to the conviction question. I'm sure plenty of people know their case and will happily give them jobs to help them out. no, they were convicted of the crime as they pled guilty to it. the maintaining their innocence is a personal thing. in the eyes of the law they committed the crime and it's still on their record. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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