A blog dedicated to addressing myths and distortions in the murders of Stevie Branch, Michael Moore, and Christopher Byers, who were murdered on May 5th, 1993, in a patch of woods located in West Memphis, Arkansas, known as “Robin Hood Hills.” The victims were three, 8-year-old cub scouts who had gone off to play together one day and never made it back home. To date numerous documentaries have been made on the murders and the trials of the men eventually convicted of this heinous crime. The men were Jason Baldwin, Damien Echols, and Jessie Misskelley, who at the time of the murders were only teenagers, and were branded in the media as the West Memphis Three (WM3).
These men would eventually win parole for the murders thanks to a well funded series of appeals, as a direct result of the media surrounding the documentaries. Many celebrities had even come out not in support of justice for the victims, but in misguided support for the men convicted in their slaying. They had come to believe from the film portrayals that these men were some how innocent and rail-roaded. Some of the celebrity supporters would include, “Lord of the Rings” director, Peter Jackson, who donated millions of dollars of his own personal money to defend these men. Others would include actor Johnny Depp, Natlie Maines of the “Dixie Chicks,” and Eddie Vedder of “Pearl Jam.”
After spending by some estimates $20 million, dragging out the appeals process, the WM3 secured a plea deal where they were paroled after 20 years, and entered what is known as an Alford plea. An Alford plea under the law is considered the same as a guilty plea, but the defendant is still allowed to insist they’re innocent, but likely to be convicted based on overwhelming evidence. Essentially after years of denying their guilt, they pled guilty, but were allowed to save face with this deal.
And now they’re free, and able to enjoy their lives while their victims receive no justice, and their families no peace.
thewm3revelations 