Without special protections — which he refused — officials doubted he’d survive. Although Damein Echols had a teenager's typical disdain for authority, he nevertheless trusted that the system would work in his favor. As the movement to free the West Memphis Three gained traction, a number of celebrities joined the cause, bringing the case under more scrutiny. Rex Reed gets to the heart of Devil’s Knot. With a large population of fundamentalist Christians, the American South was particularly subject to occult paranoia. On the surface, 18-year-old Damien Echols, an intelligent, but psychologically troubled teen with interests in Wicca and extreme music, fit the profile. The third put forth the unusual theory that the killings were committed as a cult ritual. In the years since the trial, John Mark Byers, adoptive father of Christopher Byers, and Pamela Hobbs, mother of Stevie Branch, became vocal supporters of the West Memphis Three. May 6, 1993: The morning after the murders, Jessie's friend, Buddy Lucas, stopped by Jessie's house. The case of the West Memphis Three is a miasma of claim and counter claim. Yet, Judge David Burnett accepted Griffis as an expert. Reaching its apex in the late 1980s and early 1990s, the Satanic Panic was a wave of paranoia rooted in the belief that Satanic cults intent on corrupting the souls of the young had infiltrated American society. After 18 years in prison, the West Memphis Three were finally free, but not exonerated. ... Atom Egoyan, right, directing a shot in his feature "Devil's Knot," about the West Memphis murder case. This channel was generated automatically by YouTube's video discovery system. "... Every crime, no matter what it is, gets blamed on Satanism.". Help us deliver the latest daily reporting and analysis on news, politics, culture and food in Arkansas. Luminol tests, which reveal the hidden presence of blood, were not performed at the scene until six days later. ... Egoyan knows–as will many viewers–that the state of Arkansas considers this chilling case solved. One of the keys to understanding the West Memphis Three murders is the phenomenon known as the Satanic Panic. Nevertheless, Echols made no incriminating statements. Three teenagers were arrested and convicted for the crimes. Devil’s Knot: The True Story of the West Memphis Three by Mara Leveritt is published by Simon and Schuster. This is a story of justice delayed and justice denied. On Aug. 11, 2011, the West Memphis Three entered the courtroom for the final time. Buddy said Jessie told him he "hurt" some boys in West Memphis the night before. Titled West of Memphis, the film, directed by Amy J. Berg, presents an overview of the West Memphis Three's 18 years in prison, the revelation of new evidence, and explores the possibility of an alternate suspect. In 2004, Vicki Hutcheson recanted her trial testimony, stating that she had lied on the stand. '", In 1999, a more mature Echols explained the comment. With their lives hanging in the balance, investigator Ron Lax is trying to find the truth between the town's need for justice and the … A murderer was loose in West Memphis. Despite the best efforts of the police, dozens of volunteers, a search-and-rescue team, and a helicopter dispatched from nearby Memphis, Tenn., searchers came up empty handed. Christopher Byers, … Two of the West Memphis Three's most ardent supporters were director Peter Jackson, best known for The Lord of the Rings films, and his partner Fran Walsh. Then again some murders have been solved decades after the killings. New possible suspects named in the brutal 1993 West Memphis murders of three cub scouts - including one of the boy's stepfathers. The bodies had been removed from the water and placed on the adjacent embankment, possibly disturbing physical evidence or otherwise contaminating the scene. Because I was thinking, if you haven't done anything, then they can't prove you did something you haven't actually done. As the West Memphis Three languished behind bars for 18 years, thousands of supporters called out for their freedom while others vehemently declared their guilt. To them, their work is not finished until the murders are solved and justice is done. This is a crime book written by Mara Leveritt in 2002, was written about the 1993 murders of the three eight years old children and the trials of the three teenagers charged with the crime. Supporting the Arkansas Times' independent journalism is more vital than ever. According to Devil's Knot author Mara Leveritt, the investigation of the murders was divided along three lines. The case of the West Memphis Three is a miasma of claim and counter claim. The second postulated that they had been slain by one or more strangers. Echols, then 18, was soon charged with the crime, with police insisting it was a satanic ritual murder. Why would the gifted Canadian filmmaker Atom Egoyan choose to make “Devil’s Knot,” a feature film about a notorious unsolved 1993 murder … Lingering questions about the case, including a 2007 DNA analysis that reported Hobbs as the source of a hair found inside a knot used in the crime, prompted the imagined trial at Rhodes. This weekend, a much bigger film about the case will have its U.S. theatrical premiere in Little Rock. Replacing Burnett was Circuit Court Judge David Laser. That there were three victims was a link to the biblical number of the beast. The first being that boys were killed by someone they knew. Among those active in the cause were singer Eddie Vedder of the band Pearl Jam, the country music trio The Dixie Chicks, punk rock icon and poet Henry Rollins, and actor Johnny Depp. Feigning a romantic interest in Echols, she asked Misskelley to arrange a meeting. In her recantation, Hutcheson stated that when she asked Echols directly if he had killed "those three kids," he replied, "No. Atom Egoyan’s cool gaze adheres to the known facts of the case in the disappointing Devil’s Knot. In 1996, HBO released the documentary film Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills. Best selling books such as Lawrence Pazder's Michelle Remembers and disgraced evangelical comedian Mike Warnke's The Satan Seller fueled the madness with tales of ritual abuse and human sacrifice. ... West Memphis is pretty much like a second Salem," Echols stated in the 1996 documentary Paradise Lost: The Murders at Robin Hood Hills. The first being that boys were killed by someone they knew. Founded in 1974, the Arkansas Times is a lively, opinionated source for news, politics and culture in Arkansas. Mike Allen arrived on the scene. ... Director Egoyan personalizes the murders of three eight-year-old boys, drawing in tight on the grief of Pam Hobbs (Witherspoon), the mother of one of the victims. During Misskelley's trial, Hutcheson testified that she had attended an "an occult Satanic meeting" she referred to as an "esbat." The case, although officially declared solved, continues to be investigated by police. Yet, the majority of evidence was circumstantial, dating back to Echols’ troubled childhood that consisted of violence and psychiatric … Misskelley told Hutcheson that he really didn't know much about Echols other than that he was "a weird person." Over two decades after the murders, what really happened to Stevie Branch, Christopher Byers, and Michael Moore on the evening of May 5, 1993, remains a mystery. In 2016, the site seemed to be showing its age. Download it once and read it on your Kindle device, PC, phones or tablets. The murders are still fiercely debated online, largely curated by those who passionately believe in the innocence of the convicted men. ... More than 20 years and several documentaries after the horrific 1993 mutilation murders … To this day, it inspires fierce debate and accusations of guilt, while the facts and evidence remain contested. Griffis also found the devil in nearly every number associated with the crime. Although the bodies were discovered at 1:30 p.m., investigators didn't call the coroner until 3:58 p.m. By the time the coroner arrived, fly larvae were already present in the nostrils and eyes of the victims. The next to be found was Stevie Branch, quickly followed by Christopher Byers. In 2019, the New York Times Review of Books listed Devil’s Knot as one of the “classic—and completely terrifying—real-life stories” in its “50 States of True Crime.” The Boys on the Tracks (1998, St. Martin’s Press) explores murder and prosecutorial corruption in Saline County. Eventually the case was resolved but in a perplexing legal … The Paradise Lost and West of Memphis documentaries and the book and movie Devil's Knot completely leave out the fact Jessie Misskelley confessed to the murders numerous times both before and after he was convicted. WEST MEMPHIS, AR — Before Making a Murderer and before Serial, there was the West Memphis Three. The triple-murder case captured the nation’s attention after the release of the HBO documentary Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills in June 1996. Firth voices his own views on doubt — regarding both the case and his role in “Devil’s Knot.”. One of the 8-year-olds is Hobbs’ stepson, Stevie Branch. In a last ditch effort, they entered an Alford Plea, a complex and seldom used legal maneuver that would see them plead guilty while still asserting their innocence. And by law, the teenagers convicted in 1994 — Jessie Misskelley, Jason Baldwin and Damien Echols — remain guilty. Polygraph tests revealed deception in the answers of both men in regard to the crimes. To them, their work is not finished until the murders are solved and justice is done. They are taken to trial, where Baldwin and Misskelley are sentenced to life in prison, and Echols to death, all the while proclaiming their innocence. The sad reality is that it may never be solved and the little boys’ killers will live out their pathetic lives unpunished. Here, to accompany the premiere, the Arkansas Times presents two articles relating to the theme of doubt that runs through the film and the case. At approximately 1:30 p.m., Steve Jones, a juvenile parole officer from Crittenden County, peered over the steep bank of a water-filled ditch in the woods near the Blue Beacon truck wash. Based on the actual events of the West Memphis Three, where three young boys were savagely murdered in West Memphis, Arkansas in 1993. There is always hope this will happen with the Memphis murders. The first is an interview with British actor Colin Firth, who portrays Ron Lax, a prominent Memphis private investigator who understood the importance of doubt. Terry Hobbs, stepfather of victim Steven Branch, and his friend, David Jacoby, with the assistance of … Stating that she would ask around, Hutcheson agreed to "play detective.". However, under pressure, leading questions, and scare tactics, Misskelley wove a contradictory story that first placed him at the crime scene as an eyewitness to the murders and then as an active participant. Three teenagers were arrested and convicted for the crimes. According to Devil's Knot author Mara Leveritt, the investigation of the murders was divided along three lines. Terry Hobbs, Todd Moore, and Dana Moore still maintain that Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin, and Jessie Misskelley murdered their sons. I didn't even comprehend that the situation could get this serious — that it can go this far. Knowing that the police were already focusing on Damien Echols, Hutcheson asked her neighbor, Jessie Misskelley Jr., about the brooding teen and his occult connection. Also, law enforcement chose not to focus on the victims' families as the starting point of the investigation as is the norm. Devil’s knot true story of the West Memphis three. I'd wager that almost no one seeing this movie will be ignorant of its real-life inspiration: the 1993 murders and mutilations of three little boys in West Memphis, Arkansas, and the hysteria-tinged court case that led to the conviction and subsequent release of three local teens for murder. Also part of the plea was the provision that the three could not sue the state. All three teens were convicted of the murders and ordered to serve life in prison, except for Echols, who was sentenced to death. After hours of questioning, a frustrated Morgan blurted out that he had been hospitalized for drug and alcohol abuse and might have committed the murders. The case, although officially declared solved, continues to be investigated by police. ... Atom Egoyan, right, directing a shot in his feature "Devil's Knot," about the West Memphis murder case. Christopher Byers, … As recounted in Mara Leveritt's book, Devil's Knot, a thorough search of Robin Hood Hills directed by Chief Inspector Gary W. Gitchell of the West Memphis Police Department commenced early on the morning of May 6, 1993. ... More than 20 years and several documentaries after the horrific 1993 mutilation murders … In 1994, Dr. Dale W. Griffis was a retired police officer who had embarked on a second career as a self-styled consultant on occult and cult-related crime. Initially, Misskelley repeatedly denied having knowledge of the crime, aside from rumors that Damien Echols was involved. Other possible suspects included Brian Holland and Chris Morgan, two young men from Memphis, Tenn., with a history of drug offenses. Misskelley, who had entered the West Memphis police station that morning with hopes of reward money he might use to purchase a new truck for his father found himself instead charged with murder and facing life plus 40 years in prison. I kind of enjoy it because now even after I die, people are going to remember me forever. Making his way through the muck on his hands and knees, Ridge soon discovered clothing twisted around sticks and thrust into the ditch's bottom. With their 2007 request for a new trial rejected, time was running out for the West Memphis Three. According to Griffis, black hair, black T-shirts, and black jeans were signs that a kid was in league with the devil. In 2013, Jackson and Damien Echols produced a fourth documentary about the case. It’s a case built on a shoddy confession and community bias, and includes allegations of Satanism, sexual abuse and mutilation. In the minds of many, the bizarre nature of the Robin Hood Hills murders could only have been committed by one of Satan's minions. On May 6, 1993, three boys are found hog-tied and murdered in a ditch in West Memphis, Arkansas. That classroom reinterpretation in Tennessee of a case deemed settled by Arkansas officials was video-recorded and may soon be placed online. Griffis also knew how to spot a Satanist. None of the early interviews with the parents were recorded. University of Arkansas bottom line: All dishonesty is not a crime, an interview with British actor Colin Firth, second is an excerpt from my new book, “Dark Spell: Surviving the Sentence,”. She has since expressed her belief that her ex-husband was involved in the murders, citing the discovery of her son's favorite pocket knife in Terry Hobbs' belongings. "... (Detective Allen) told me if I knew anything, that there was a $35,000 reward, and if I could help them out, we'd get the money," said Misskelley, as quoted by Mara Leveritt in Devil's Knot. Despite an offer of a reduced sentence, Misskelley ultimately recanted his statements and refused to testify against Echols and Baldwin. At the time of the West Memphis Three trial, Griffis claimed to have given seminars to 38,000 police officers all over the globe. The pair abruptly fled to Oceanside, Calif., four days after the murders. Under order of the Arkansas Supreme Court, there were to be new evidentiary hearings in the case. Info about the movie being produced with Reese Witherspoon and Colin Firth originally written by Mark Sevi and soon to be a major motion picture. Spurred on by the demand from a grieving town, the local police act quickly to bring three "devil-worshipping" teenagers to trial. Minutes later, Sgt. In this first confession, Miskelley often agreed to details suggested by the police or attributed to prior statements which he did not make. Pam Hobbs divorced Terry Hobbs in 2004 and has reversed her position on the West Memphis Three's guilt. The film implied that the teens were innocent. However, in 2010, a series of rapidly unfolding developments turned the tide for Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin and Jessie Misskelley. “Devil’s Knot,” a film based on my book by the same title, will open at the Central Arkansas Library System’s Ron Robinson Theater two days before the 21st anniversary of the still-troubling murders. Although she was unable to recall the exact location or anyone who attended the alleged meeting, she claimed a drunken Echols confessed to the murders. 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