Located across from Memphis, on the west bank of the Mississippi River, West Memphis shares many problems with its more famous neighbor. But says the rest of the accusations in the documentary are false. Echols friend, Jason Baldwin, 16, was subsequently wrapped up in the investigation, and a third teenager, Jessie Misskelley Jr., 17, also came under scrutiny. In 1994, in what was widely believed to be a miscarriage of justice, three teens, 18-year-old Damien Echols, 17-year-old Jessie Misskelley Jr., and 16-year-old Jason Baldwin, were convicted in connection to the deaths of Christopher Byers, Michael Moore, and Steve Branch the previous year. (Memphis) Its a murder mystery thats captivated America for the last twenty years: the West Memphis Three. Lisa Waddell The Commercial Appeal, Courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics, What We Learn From the Descendants of Murderers. or day, whenever. there. },false) Its a case built on a shoddy confession and community bias, and includes allegations of Satanism, sexual abuse and mutilation. Have you seen that?" The information that Hobbs volunteers to talk about is the manholes! On the afternoon of May 5, 1993, the three friends were enjoying a warm spring afternoon outdoors. A new documentary about the murders, West of Memphis, also homed in on Terry Hobbs, claiming that his DNA was found on rope used to tie the boys' feet. pg.acq.push(function() { Pam Hobbs has said she does not believe the three men who were originally convicted for the crimes were guilty of murdering her son and his friends. Terry Hobbs says he is a church member, a father, and working man and in no way a killer. Get an all-access pass to never-before-seen content, free digital evidence kits, and much more! Lucas has been described as mentally 'slow', WREG reported. He then tells the officer that in viewing the wooded area he determined this is not a place that he would hang out at. In an interview for the film, Echols supported the notion. Investigators soon zeroed in on 18-year-old high school dropout Damien W. Echols, who was interrogated on May 7. Multiple instances of contradictory statements. Det. 'I am content in my heart that Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin and Jessie Misskelley did not murder my son,' Stevies mother Pam Hobbs said as she pleaded for investigators to look at new evidence. Officer: "K, who was with you at that time?" While there was a startling lack of physical evidence, a combination of a coerced confession and the prosecution painting them out to be pantomime villains via their haircuts and brooding dressing styles to a conservative jury doomed them. Eddie Vedder and Johnny Depp staged a "Free the West Memphis Three" benefit concert in Little Rock, Arkansas, and the convicts became international figures. eventAction: 'click_adunit' How much of this evidence would hold up in court? Twice Hobbs was asked about anything unusual that he "saw." As mentioned earlier, Terry Hobbs, like John Mark Byers before him, was fingered as a suspect in 2012's West of Memphis after a hair found at the crime scene was genetically matched to him. if(document.querySelector("#adunit")){ Terry Hobbs's Interview. "I got in a DWI after my wife was murdered." He served as a producer for West of Memphis and has helped promote the film. Oxygen Insider is your all-access pass to never-before-seen content, free digital evidence kits, and much more! Coverage of the latest true crime stories and famous cases explained, as well as the best TV shows, movies and podcasts in the genre. Get all your true crime news from Oxygen. The child was near a fence on . Another possible suspect that police never thoroughly investigated was another teenager, Chris Morgan. He then apparently asked "Mark?" There's and Mike, no Stevie and Mike, on each side of him, I think. eventCategory: event.slot.getSlotElementId(), Eight-year-olds Stevie, Michael and Christopher were best friends and Cub Scout members who attended Weaver Elementary School, where they were in second grade. Testing had previously revealed that the DNA linked to Terry Hobbs, stepfather of one of the murdered children, was found in the ligatures on the sneaker of one of the boys. 55-year-old Terry Hobbs is from Kinard. Hobbs, along with his daughter Amanda, drove Pam to her workplace. Prosecutor Brent Davis would not comment about the DNA, but did file a report acknowledging that DNA from the West Memphis 3 was not discovered at the crime scene. But, it is finished! Yet while their quest for justice is admirable, with West of Memphis, they have overstepped. Said to have confessed to killing neighbor's cat. In their quest to clear the names of the "West Memphis Three"Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin, and Jessie Misskelley, Jr. who were teenagers when they were convicted for the 1993 killingsthe filmmakers decide that they have found the actual murderer: Terry Hobbs, the stepfather of one of the murdered boys. me about that one time. The following year, lawyers working for the West Memphis Three presented the new DNA tests, which showed no link between them and the 1993 murders, according to the Arkansas Times. Hobbs says he is a victim in the story and has even tried to file lawsuits against those whove said otherwise but says, because hes seen as a public figure, lawyers tell him that he doesnt have a case. The ensuing manhunt, trials, and convictions captivated the small town and drew big-time media attention. Sadler is then allowed to claim that Hobbs would make Stevie watch him masturbate, and that he also molested Stevie's sister, Amanda. This would explain why there was very little physical evidence at the supposed crime scene in the woods around the ditch. },false) "I don't know what to think about it," Hobbs said. The bodies of all three boys, all eight-years-old, had been found in a creek in Robin Hood Hills, a stretch of forested land in the city that was popular among the children on May 6, 1993. Last year, the Three were freed from prison after their lawyers successfully argued that new evidence dug up in the years since the convictions warranted an appeal in front of the Arkansas Supreme Court. Rain, it seems, had washed away any incriminating trails or threads. Even if it could be proven to be Hobbs's, however, there's a chance it got on the shoelace through "secondary transfer"in other words, Stevie's shoes might have picked up one of Hobbs's hairs just from lying around at home. Book News! Photo: He then goes on to tell the officer about something that he did not see but only heard about. Who Were Victims Stevie Branch, Michael Moore and Christopher Byers? }); Terry Hobbs: "Well I think Gary Gitchell had it and I don't know how he got it. Stevies mother, Pamela Hicks, said the last time she spoke to her son, he asked for permission to go bike riding with his friends, according to Memphis NBC affiliate WMC-TV. Their names have emerged after a witness stepped forward to claim that Buddy Lucas told him he had been part of the murders, years after they had taken place. In the film, Judy Sadler, another of Stevie's aunts, says of Hobbs: "There's always been something that creeped me out about him." Its fun! Hobbs says the hair found could be his, all those little boys played at our home.. In June 1996, HBO aired Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills, the first of three documentaries that took a critical look at the case, highlighting law enforcements questionable investigation tactics and lack of physical evidence tying Echols, Baldwin and Misskelley to the murders. He was held for 12 hours and interrogated without his parents present. The following year, lawyers working for the West Memphis Three presented the new DNA tests, which showed no link between them and the 1993 murders, according to the, Baldwin, 34, Echols and Misskelley, both 36, pleaded guilty to first- and second-degree murder charges through an Alford plea which allowed them to simultaneously proclaim their innocence, according to, I am innocent, as are Jason and Jessie, but I made this decision because I did not want to spend another day of my life behind those bars, Echols said, according to the. window.adsContainer = {"positionAfterTitle":{"code":"Article_Desktop_300x250_Middle5_Rel_Newrev","isOrganicUserAd":true,"max_width":336,"max_height":280},"position2":{"code":"Article_Desktop_300x250_After_Title_Rel_Newrev","max_width":336,"max_height":280},"position3":{"code":"Article_Desktop_300x250_Below_Next_Rel_Newrev","max_width":300,"max_height":250},"position4":{"code":"Article_Desktop_300x250_Middle_Rel_Newrev","max_width":300,"max_height":250},"position5":{"code":"Article_Desktop_300x250_Middle1_Rel_Newrev","max_width":300,"max_height":250},"position6":{"code":"Article_Desktop_300x250_Middle2_Rel_Newrev","max_width":336,"max_height":280},"position7":{"code":"Article_Desktop_300x250_Middle3_Rel_Newrev","max_width":300,"max_height":250},"position8":{"code":"Article_Desktop_300x250_Middle4_Rel_Newrev","max_width":300,"max_height":250},"position9":{"code":"Article_Desktop_300x250_Middle5_Rel_Newrev","max_width":336,"max_height":280},"position10":{"code":"Article_Desktop_300x250_Middle6_Rel_Newrev","max_width":336,"max_height":280},"position11":{"code":"Article_Desktop_300x250_Middle7_Rel_Newrev","max_width":336,"max_height":280},"position12":{"code":"Article_Desktop_300x250_Middle8_Rel_Newrev","max_width":336,"max_height":280},"position13":{"code":"Article_Desktop_300x250_Middle9_Rel_Newrev","max_width":336,"max_height":280},"position14":{"code":"Article_Desktop_300x250_Middle10_Rel_Newrev","max_width":336,"max_height":280},"position15":{"code":"Article_Desktop_300x250_Middle11_Rel_Newrev","max_width":336,"max_height":280},"position16":{"code":"Article_Desktop_300x250_Middle12_Rel_Newrev","max_width":336,"max_height":280},"positionTop":{"code":"Article_Desktop_970x250_Header_Rel","isOrganicUserAd":false,"max_width":970,"max_height":250},"positionBottom":{"code":"Article_Desktop_Sidebar_Bottom_Rel_Newrev","isOrganicUserAd":true,"max_width":300,"max_height":600},"positionBottomRight":{"code":"Article_Desktop_300x250_After_Title_Rel_Newrev","isOrganicUserAd":true,"max_width":336,"max_height":280}} document.querySelector("#adunit").addEventListener('click',function(){ Terry Hobbs is the stepfather of Stevie Branch. Hobbs's language indicates he is making up the story of having seen or heard about a picture of Damien Echols sitting on his couch. Anybody else?" To this day, it inspires fierce debate and accusations of guilt, while the facts and evidence remain contested. Well sure, said Hobbs. to which the officer replied "Mark Byers.". So you didn`t even see them that day at all? asked Hall. Her home later burnt down. According to the police report, Hobbs admitted that he had entered Frenchs house and put his arms around her as she came out of the shower. Because of the DNA matches and Hobbs's checkered background, many people feel Terry Hobbs was responsible for the death of the three boys. They've enlisted private investigators, forensic pathologists, and defense lawyers, none of which would have come cheap. Based on the flimsiest of evidence, including a confession from Misskelley that the filmmakers say was coerced, Misskelley and Baldwin got life sentences while Echols, the supposed ringleader, was sentenced to death. Supervised child fight at gunpoint. Their suspicions were seemingly confirmed when the DNA from a cigarette they lifted from his home was a match with the hair they found on Michael's shoe. Instead, hes decided to be surprised like the rest of us. The gruesome nature of their murders led investigators to theorize there was a satanic element to it -- something that wasn't too farfetched in the Bible Belt considering 'Satanic Panic' was still making the rounds back then -- and zero in on Echols, Misskelley Jr., and Baldwin, mischief-makers with an unruly reputation that preceded them. In 1994 . window.googletag.pubads().addEventListener('impressionViewable', function(event) { Two girls claimed to have overheard Echols say he had killed the boys. Lorri Davis and Damien Echols at a panel entitled "Wrongfully Accused," part of the Death Becomes Us true crime festival.
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