Damien Wayne Echols (born Michael Wayne Hutcheson on December 11, 1974) is one of the three members of the West Memphis 3, a group convicted of committing a triple homicide in West Memphis, Arkansas.
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Crimes
Echols was convicted of murder by a jury and sentenced to die by lethal injection. His conviction and sentence have been upheld by the Arkansas Supreme Court. The Supreme Court declined to review the matter. Echols was arrested on June 3, 1993, and has been in prison ever since.
Media response
The case has received considerable attention. Many critics charge that the arrests and convictions were a miscarriage of justice inspired by a misguided moral panic, and that the defendants were wrongfully convicted during a period of intense media scrutiny and so-called "Satanic panic".
The HBO documentary films Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills and Paradise Lost 2: Revelations, and a book on the convictions, Devil's Knot by Mara Leveritt, all make the case that the convictions were wrongfully obtained and three innocent men are in prison. Another sequel, Paradise Lost 3, is currently being filmed. A second book, written earlier than Mara Leveritt's is less supportive. That book, Blood of Innocents by Guy Reel Marc and Perrusquia, examines both sides of the case without coming to any definitive conclusion. In light of the DNA tests completed in 2007 that excluded the defendants as contributors, Perrusquia has joined those who publicly doubt whether the convictions were just. [1]
Echols' case has seen significant support from numerous rock and pop musicians, who have popularized the case by staging fund-raisers including benefit CDs and an art auction with some of his own work.
Echols co-wrote the lyrics to the song "Army Reserve", on Pearl Jam's self-titled album.[2] Punk musician Michale Graves, formerly of The Misfits ("Resurrection" Line-up) has been writing music to coincide with Echols' poetry. Echols and Graves worked together on an album, illusions, released October 2007.
Later life
He has published his memoirs, Almost Home: My Life Story Vol. 1. His poetry has appeared in the Porcupine Literary Arts magazine (Volume 8, Issue 2), and he has written non-fiction for the Arkansas Literary Forum.[3]
Echols is currently seeking to overturn to his conviction based on trial error including juror misconduct, as well as with the results of a DNA Status Report filed on July 17, 2007, which concluded "none of the genetic material recovered at the scene of the crimes was attributable to Mr. Echols, Echols co-defendant, Jason Baldwin, or defendant Jessie Misskelley. . . . [a]lthough most of the genetic material recovered from the scene was attributable to the victims of the offenses, some of it cannot be attributed to either the victims or the defendants."[4]
Advanced DNA and other scientific evidence - combined with additional evidence from several different witnesses and experts - released in October 2007 has thrown the original ruling into question. A hearing on his petition for a writ of habeas corpus is pending in the Federal District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas.[5]
See also
References
- ^ National Public Radio Interview
- ^ "ECHOLS CONTRIBUTES TO NEW PEARL JAM ALBUM". wm3.org. Retrieved on 2007-07-22.
- ^ Arkansas Literary Forum
- ^ "DNA TESTING CONCLUDES". wm3.org. Retrieved on 2007-07-22.
- ^ American Chronicle | Echols' Attorneys File New Motion Claiming Wrongful Conviction In 'West Memphis Three' Case
External links
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Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Damien Echols |
- West Memphis Three Support Group
- West Memphis Three at Court TV
- Billboard.com article about Michale Graves/Echols collaboration
Michale Graves (ex-Misfits) performing "Frost Bite," a song written by Damien Echols, acoustically at Borders in the Silver City Galleria in Taunton, MA on April 3, 2006, courtesy of AlexIsLegend.com If you want a CD containing all four of my acoustic Michale Graves videos as well as the MP3s of the songs, please message http://pl.youtube.com/user/xalexislegendx for more details.
Author: Kessador
Keywords: Michale Graves Frost Bite
Added: January 3, 2009
Creepy's Crappy Movie Reviews - Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2
Directed by Joe Berlinger To cash in on all of the "real world" hype of the events in the first film, a man from Burkitsville, Maryland opens a "Blair Witch Hunt" tour, which shows patrons various locations from the original film. A bunch of college students decide to take the tour, and wind up in Rustin Parr's house. There, they decide to camp for the evening, but in the morning, they realize they didn't sleep and they don't remember anything that happened the previous night. From there, they go back to town, and discover that something...or someone has come with them.
Author: wesvance
Keywords: Blair Witch Project Sequel Book of Shadows part Joe Berlinger Damien Echols Paradise Lost West Memphis Three Horror Review
Added: December 31, 2008
Goon
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Author: mrjazzfish64
Keywords: wm3 "west memphis three" "damien echols" "jason baldwin" "jessie misskelley"
Added: December 27, 2008
Teenage Monster
Visit http://www.wm3.org and show your support.
Author: macabremanifest
Keywords: The West Memphis Three Damien Echols Jessie Misskelley Jason Baldwin Michale Graves Teenage Monster Robin Hood Hills Paradise Lost macabremanifest
Added: December 13, 2008
Damien Echols KATV
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Author: mrjazzfish64
Keywords: wm3 "west memphis three" "damien echols" "jason baldwin" "jessie misskelley"
Added: December 5, 2008