http://www.katv.com/story/15292990/wm3-walk-free-after-plea-bargain I remember watching documentaries and reading stories about how these poor kids (now middle aged men) got railroaded just because they wore Metallica shirts and painted their nails black. It's about time!
Yep, WEST Memphis 3 have been set free after pleading guilty. Pretty confusing. Here's an article that explains it a little bit. Sounds like the State offered the deal in order to keep from having a new trial and getting a not guilty verdict due to most of the witnesses either changing sides or passing away since the first trial. This also keeps the defendents from ever suing the State. Pretty interesting! http://news.blogs.cnn.com/2011/08/19/how-can-west-memphis-3-walk-free/
That's fantastic news that the three of them are out of prison. It's a shame that they had to plead guilty in order to get out. It's a crime that these men spent nearly two decades in prison, and some prosecutors, deputies, and that asshat judge should be serving time as well. It's even more of a crime that the real killer will likely never be caught let alone pursued since the West Memphis Three plead out.
I saw the the 48hrs special of the west memphis 3 a couple of weeks ago on the mystery channel. It was pretty interesting. Lots of hollywood stars were helping to try and free them, Johnny Depp, Eddie Vedder, that chick from the Dixie Chix.
Peter Jackson funded their entire appeals/investigation process. Hired experts/scientists/investigators/lawyers out of his own pocket.
I think the saddest part is that it took a bunch of celebrities with millions that paid for all of their legal fees that made this possible. Any average person without this kind of media coverage or money wouldn't stand a chance and would probably still be locked up.
I agree. People got all outraged over Casey Anthony. This case is a real travesty of justice. I'd rather have 10 Casey Anthonys than a single case like this.
I wish they could find out who did the killings. One of the most brutal and horrible murder cases I have ever heard of.
Thought about getting this in the past but don't know enough of the story. Wouldn't want to support murderers (again, I don't know anything about it).
There was that one kid who looked the part and acted indignant throughout the trial. They were definitely innocent but he played the part too well. He was way too cocky. I'm sure he regrets that to this day.
Police heard rumors that the young lovers had planned to have a child and sacrifice the infant; based on this story, they had Echols institutionalized for psychiatric evaluation. He was diagnosed as depressed and suicidal, and was prescribed the antidepressant imipramine. Subsequent testing demonstrated poor mathematical skills, but also showed that Echols ranked above average in reading and verbal skills. Echols spent several months in a mental institution in Arkansas, and afterward received "full disability" status from the Social Security Administration.[10] During Echols' trial, Dr. George W. Woods testified (for the defense) that Echols suffered from: "... serious mental illness characterized by grandiose and persecutory delusions, auditory and visual hallucinations, disordered thought processes, substantial lack of insight, and chronic, incapacitating mood swings."
Chris Morgan and Brian Holland Early in the investigation, the WMPD briefly regarded two West Memphis teenagers as suspects. Chris Morgan and Brian Holland, both with drug offense histories, had abruptly departed for Oceanside, California four days after the bodies were discovered. Morgan was presumed to be at least casually familiar with all three murdered boys, having previously driven an ice cream truck route in their neighborhood. Arrested in Oceanside on 17 May 1993, Morgan and Holland both took polygraph exams administered by California police. Examiners reported that both men's charts indicated deception when they denied involvement in the murders. During subsequent questioning, Morgan claimed a long history of drug and alcohol use, along with blackouts and memory lapses. He furthermore claimed that he "might have" killed the victims but quickly recanted this part of his statement. California police sent blood and urine samples from Morgan and Holland to the WMPD, but there is no indication WMPD investigated Morgan or Holland as suspects following their arrest in California. The relevance of Morgan's recanted statement would later be debated in trial, but was eventually barred from admission as evidence. "Mr. Bojangles" The sighting of a black male as a possible alternate suspect was implied during the beginning of the trial, at which time the possibility of conviction of the initial suspects seemed slim. According to local West Memphis police officers, on the evening of 5 May 1993, at 8:42 pm, workers in the Bojangles' restaurant about a mile from the crime scene (a direct route through the bayou where the children were found) in Robin Hood Hills reported seeing a black male "dazed and covered with blood and mud" inside the ladies' room of the restaurant. Defense attorneys later referred to this man as "Mr. Bojangles." The man was bleeding from his arm and had brushed it against the walls of the restroom. The man had also defecated on himself and on the floor. The police were called, and Officer Regina Meeks responded (by inquiring at the drive through window) about 45 minutes later. By then, the man had left and police did not enter the restroom on that date. The following day when the victims' bodies were found, Bojangles' manager Marty King, thinking there was a possible connection between the bloody, disoriented man and the killings, called police twice to inform them of his suspicions. According to Regina Meeks' testimony during the Echols/Baldwin Trial, after the second telephone call, police gathered evidence from the restroom.[citation needed] Investigators wore their same shoes and clothes from the Robin Hood Hills crime scene into the Bojangles restaurant bathroom, conceivably contaminating that scene.[citation needed] Police detective Bryn Ridge later stated he lost the blood scrapings taken from the walls and tiles of the restroom.[citation needed] A hair identified as belonging to a black male was later recovered from a sheet which was used to wrap one of the victims.
Holy crap. When I first read this I thought "lol of course a black male was spotted." As I read further though, wow. How in the world did this happen? What a terrible miscarriage of justice.
