Yesterday, I was talking about the story of the West Memphis Three, three teens accused of murder in the early ’90s. Some thought they were unfairly convicted and the whole thing came to a head late last week in Jonesboro, Arkansas.
Friday, it was announced that the West Memphis Three would go free, but there was a catch. They had to accept an Alford plea deal. Yeah, no one else had any idea what that was either, but apparently, the three had to plead “no contest,” conceding that the prosecutors probably had enough evidence to keep them in jail. But, the three were allowed to say they were innocent of the murders. They wouldn’t be able to sue Arkansas for unfairly imprisoning them for the past 18 years, but they could make money off interviews and such.
It seemed like there would definitely be another trial and even the prosecutor admitted on television that the state offered the three the deal because the three would probably get another trial and be acquitted and by offering this deal, they were saving Arkansas from being sued.
If that were the case, why would the West Memphis Three agree to the deal? Echols, who had been in solitary confinement the whole time, probably would have signed anything to get out of prison. Misskelley and Baldwin said they didn’t want to take the plea because they were innocent, but they did it to save their friend from being executed. Doesn’t really sound like the reasoning of psychopathic murders, does it?
So, who wins in this case? Three little boys are still dead and public opinion is split as to whether their killers actually served any time or not. If the West Memphis Three didn’t do it (and I personally don’t believe they did), they spent their youth in prison. At 16-years-old, Baldwin was the youngest of the three. At the press conference Friday, he is a 33-year-old man losing his hair. After years of solitary confinement, Echols, a defiant teenager mugging for the camera during the trial, seemed shy and withdrawn from contact with others. Misskelley avoided any partying, choosing instead to go home with family. He is the only one that has chosen to stay in Arkansas. The other two left, vowing never to return. Christopher Byers’ dad Rick and adoptive dad John as well as Stevie Branch’s mom Pamela have questioned the original verdict of the case, wondering publicly if the real killers were caught. So they feel that someone got away with the murder of their children. However, Stevie Branch’s dad, Steve Sr., believed the three are guilty and calls their release a “nightmare” for him. An entire town is scarred by all of this. Depp, Maines, and Vedder look good for helping what they saw as an unfair conviction. As far as I can tell, they are the only real winners in this case. Any way you look at it, justice wasn’t served.