New trial may hinge on DNA statute
McDaniel 'dodging and weaving' on law, attorney says.
by Gerard Matthews
On Sept. 30, the Arkansas Supreme Court will hold a hearing to determine whether Damien Echols, one of the men now known as the West Memphis Three, will get a new trial. Nearly two weeks ago, some of the West Memphis Three's most famous supporters gathered in Little Rock for "Voices for Justice," an event to raise awareness about the case and Echols' hearing. The event was considered a huge success by organizers, but the concert and star-studded press conference that preceded it perhaps overshadowed a key impediment to the three's efforts to get a new trial.
According to Dennis Riordan, an attorney for Echols, the attorney general's interpretation of the state's DNA statute, if accepted by the court, will not only keep Echols and co-defendants Jason Baldwin and Jesse Misskelley behind bars, but it also could prevent anyone from ever being granted a new trial based on DNA evidence.
Don't miss "AC360°" tonight and tomorrow at 10 p.m. ET for it's two-part series on the case of the West Memphis 3.
Grady, Arkansas (CNN) -- Some things about Damien Echols remain unchanged since he was sentenced to death in 1994 at the age of 19 after being convicted of murdering three 8-year-old boys.
At 35, his favorite holiday is still Halloween. To celebrate, friends say, he sends them hand-made jack-o'-lantern cards. He longs for contact with the outside world.
"I miss the things that most people take for granted, things people don't want, like rain," Echols told CNN in a face-to-face interview airing on tonight's "AC360°."
"To go out and touch it and get wet, or to feel snow. I loved snow my entire life, and I haven't had that in almost 20 years now."
JONESBORO — Three men convicted of the murder of three West Memphis boys have pleaded guilty to lesser charges in a deal with prosecutors that had them released from prison with time already served.
Damien Echols, Jesse Misskelley and Jason Baldwin have been imprisoned since being convicted in the 1993 slayings of Boy Scouts Stevie Branch, Michael Moore, and Christopher Byers.
In a hearing Friday in Jonesboro, Circuit Court Judge David Laser accepted from all three Alford pleas — a legal mechanism in which guilty pleas are entered but innocence is maintained.
Victim's father angry over release of West Memphis 3
Aug 20, 2011
WEST MEMPHIS, AR -
(WMC-TV) - The father of one of three boys murdered in 1993 is outraged over the deal that allowed the West Memphis Three to walk free Friday.
Saturday, Todd Moore, the father of victim James Michael Moore, released a statement detailing his anger over the deal.
"Justice has not been served in this case and while those men may be out of prison they will in fact never truly be free," Moore wrote in his statement. "They will always have to live with the fact that they are still convicted child murderers in the eyes of the law and society."
West Memphis 3: Sheriff Who Discovered The Bodies Reacts
August 19, 2011
FAST FACTS:
Sheriff Mike Allen found the young boys bodies in 1993
Allen is distraught over the decision to release the Memphis Three
He believes they killed the boys
(West Memphis, AR 8/19/2011)
This case has people all over the world talking, but one unique perspective comes from Crittenden County Sheriff Mike Allen.
Back when the murder occurred, he was an investigator with the West Memphis PD and pulled the bodies of the three young boys from the creek in 1993.
The emotion and pain from that day came flooding back today as three men he believes killed them, were set free.
West Memphis Three 'remain murderers' despite being freed, judge in original case says
"They admitted their guilt, they pled guilty and were allowed to disown that," said Burnett, who retired in January 2009 and lives in Osceola, Ark. "The fact is that they'll remain murderers for the rest of their lives. They walked out of that courtroom as murderers."
There was no DNA connecting any of the three suspects to the crimes. Investigators believe the crime occurred in the woods, while through the years, the possibility of it not being the crime scene have been explored. A knife recovered in a pond behind Baldwin's home was proven to be inconclusive as to being the murder weapon.
Pardons for West Memphis Three unlikely, Arkansas governor says
LITTLE ROCK -- The man with the power to grant pardons in Arkansas said Tuesday he doesn't plan to issue them in the "West Memphis Three" case unless evidence shows someone else was to blame for the murders of three Cub Scouts nearly two decades ago.
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