ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
L ike crime-solving itself, producing a book is very much a collaborative effort, not only between the two of us, but also the solid team that has worked with us and backed us up each step of the way.
First, we want to acknowledge and thank Michaela Hamilton, our talented, sensitive and insightful editor at Kensington. It is largely her enthusiasm that has seen this project through, and we are grateful to the entire publishing staff. We are so grateful to the entire team at Kensington.
Our fine agent, Jake Elwell at Harold Ober Associates, understood from the beginning what we wanted to do this time, then helped us shape and refine our ideas. He has been a continual friend, offering support and acting as a sounding board. Likewise, our attorney, advisor and friend, Steven Mark, who, in addition to everything else, is responsible for a substantial portion of the West Memphis Three research and organization. Sarah Lessa is in charge of our website, www.mindhuntersinc.com . Dave Lessa helped immensely with its planning and design, and Nikki Cheshire conducted our photo research. All three are welcome additions to the Mindhunters team. And as always, Marks wife, Carolyn, remains our in-house counsel, Mindhunters, Inc. chief of staff and our first-line reader, among her many other talents and virtues.
Profound gratitude goes out to the many individuals who freely contributed their time, talents and insights. Since they all helped so much, we will simply list them alphabetically: Bob Barnett, Philip Bermingham, Stephen Braga, Jackie and John Mark Byers, Ben Cheshire, Jack, Trudy and Stephen Collins, Lorri Davis, Damien Echols, Krista Errickson, the Honorable Bob Graham, Peter Jackson, Amanda, Curt and Deanna Knox, former special agent Kenneth Lanning, Ken Light, Jim Lovering, Chris and Edda Mellas, former special agent Steve Moore, Madison Paxton, John Ramsey, Mark Smit, Lynne Sparks, Mark Stein, Fran Walsh, Jonesboro Sun editor Chris Wessel, and Tom Wright.
And finally, to all of those who continually strive to see justice renderedand right the wrongs when it is notyou have our sincere and undying admiration.
John Douglas and Mark Olshaker
October 2012
LAW & DISORDER U PDATE 2014
W hen we finished writing Law & Disorder, we thought the case against Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito for the murder of Meredith Kercher was over and done with, and the West Memphis Three case would be moving on to final resolution.
We were wrong on both counts.
To all of us who had studied the facts and took part in the defense team effort, we felt that though we had not proven who committed the murders of Stevie Branch, Christopher Byers, and Michael Moore, we certainly believed we had proven who did not: Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin, and Jessie Misskelley Jr. None of the prosecutions evidence had held up; none of their witnesses had held up; there was no plausible motive; there was not a trace of material or scientific evidence linking any of the three to the crime scene; and what small amount of evidence did exist suggested the presence of another person: Terry Hobbs.
Whats more, we thought that the significant amount of publicity attending the three mens release from prisontogether with Damiens public statements and interviews surrounding the publication of his memoir Life After Death, and the release of both the third Bruce SinofskyJoe Berlinger Paradise Lost film and the Peter JacksonFran WalshAmy Berg production, West of Memphis would put tremendous pressure on Arkansas authorities finally to grant the West Memphis Three the exoneration they all sought and deserved.
But that was not to be.
When I had had my long telephone conversation with District Attorney Scott Ellington, of the Second Judicial District of Arkansas, he had told me the timing wasnt good to pursue the case any further at that point. I had initially believed he was referring to the intensity of the public passion on both sides in Arkansas, and that we would all do well to give it some time to die down. When I learned that he would be running for Congress, I realized I might have misinterpreted his meaning.
He won the Democratic primary to represent the First Congressional District of Arkansas, but then lost to incumbent Republican Rick Crawford in the November general election. So either way you interpreted Ellingtons statement, the election was over and the intense media focus had died down, but still nothing.
In the meantime, the West Memphis Three went about the business of getting on with their lives.
Jessie Misskelley Jr. went back home to live with his father, Big Jessie, who had visited him in prison every week during his incarceration until the final year, when the elder Jessies declining health made it too challenging. Jessie works regularly and seems to be content with life.
Jason Baldwin learned to drive and moved to Seattle with his girlfriend, Holly Ballard. He secured a job working in a law firm, is attending college, and hopes to go to law school. His intention is to defend those wrongly accused of crimes. He and Holly were executive producers on the feature film Devils Knot, loosely based on Mara Leveritts fine book on the case.
Realizing that it was only the notoriety generated by Paradise Lost that made his case an international cause and kept Damien from execution, Jason cofounded a nonprofit organization called Proclaim Justice to publicize and seek action on wrongful convictions. Among the cases upon which he has initially focused are that of Tim Howard, a black man convicted and sentenced to death in Arkansas for the murder of his best friend and best friends wife, both white; and another black man, Ben Spencer, this one in Texas, convicted of killing a white businessman, even though a Dallas judge declared him factually innocent. The Texas Court of Appeals overruled the judge. In neither case was there any material evidence against the accused. But in October 2013, a circuit court judge in Arkansas granted Howard a new trial.
Jason has also spoken frequently on the miscarriage of justice and even appeared with Pam Hobbswho reverted to her maiden name, Hicksin a program at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. He was keynote speaker at the Association in Defence of the Wrongly Convicted conference in Toronto, Canada.
Ironically, even if Jason graduates from law school, unless his felony conviction is overturned, he will not be licensed to practice and represent others like himself.
He and Damien had a falling-out over the way Damien was being portrayed in the script of Devils Knot . In spite of this, Jason has pledged, My door will always be open; and Damien has written, The movie unfortunately has driven a wedge between us, but I will always respect Jason and love him as a friend.
Damien Echols has no interest in returning to Arkansas, even for a visit. Shortly after Mark and I met with him and Lorri Davis, they bought a house and moved to Salem, Massachusetts, the scene of the earlier, highly publicized trials of those wrongly believed to be engaged in satanic evil.
He told the Boston Globe, Due to its history, Salems like a mecca for people in any form of alternative spirituality. He had long said that Halloween was his favorite holiday and fall and winter his favorite times of year.
