ITP V.011 EDITORIAL: THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM and THE WEST MEMPHIS THREE

FROM WEST MEMPHIS THREE.ORG:
The WM3 are
Free! This morning, in a Arkansas, all parties involved in the ongoing legal cases of the West Memphis Three have agreed to a plea agreement, which has resulted in the immediate release of all three men.

We will post more details here as we compile them. For more immediate information, please visit the splash page on WM3.org, for a running list of articles posted by various major news outlets pertaining to this ground-breaking event.

We would like to sincerely thank everyone who has supported the West Memphis Three over these past 18 years!

More to follow, very soon.
FROM V.011: GREAT NEWS: JASON BALDWIN, was very brave and courageous accepting a guilty plea when he is innocent to free another innocent man on death row. I found out about the WEST MEMPHIS THREE being freed last night, late at night as I was writing another journal entry, as I drafted the one journal entry to write about the WEST MEMPHIS THREE.
FYI, there was a gag order on the case until a victims father leaked the info to the press yesterday as I knew nothing and what all the hype was about. In all my cynical anger of the criminal justice system vs. The West Memphis Three I only expected a new trial, and who knows how long that would have taken.
I wondered where I would be (pretty unpredictable with my life) and what kind of celebration I would have when the WEST MEMPHIS THREE would be freed.
While I'm relived that Damien's life is spared and the West Memphis Three are freed, I'm disgusted by the plea of guilty as THE WEST MEMPHIS THREE are innocent. It's easy for us to get annoyed with the inaccuracy of the Alford Plea, for Damien Echols this IS a deal, as he sat on death row in solitary confinement and if hypothetically the verdict didn't go his way in trial, well he is ALIVE and free via the Alford Plea.
I have questions about this case: If THE WEST MEMPHIS THREE are innocent, however on paper its states they are guilty. Is this triple homicide of Stevie Branch, Michael Moore and Christopher Byers case closed, that is a tragedy indeed. According to many news outlets, the Robin Hood Hills murders case is CLOSED. So the real killers will never be found, and while I'm happy the West Memphis Three are free, bittersweet in that they admitted to a crime they didn't commit..I'm horrified that the real killer will never be found.
While I am not a lawyer, attorney, paralegal and not a cop, I do believe the WEST MEMPHIS THREE (Damien, Jason Baldwin and Jesse) to be innocent as there is no evidence against the convicted. Any DNA human evidence points towards the family of one of the victims.
Of course, V.011 is NOT accusing Terrence Hobbs, as yes his DNA was on one of the victims, we're not sure of the CONTEXT of that DNA, and that is not my job. Parents play with their kids, hair gets all over the place.
I'm sure METALLICA are interested in the WEST MEMPHIS THREE's freedom, the WEST MEMPHIS THREE were METALLICA fans and perhaps targeted via police WICCAN philosophy. :Rolls Eyes: In 1993, METALLICA were becoming very mainstream with the release of the "black" alblum , who hasn't seen, or bought preferably one of METALLICA's first four releases? METALLICA are not Satanists, they were alcoholics.
I assume WEST MEMPHIS ARKANSAS is a very conservative town, in the bible belt of Southern America just 15 minutes from Memphis Tennessee.
What kind of world do we live in where someone could be picked up and charged with triple homicide because of the music they listen to, the way they dress, religious and philosophical ideals, opinions, racial profiling, a dinkleberry fucking lame, and shame on the U.S. criminal justice system.
In closure, the Arkansas State Supreme Court had no case and no evidence against THE WEST MEMPHIS THREE, to avoid a lengthy trial, the prosecution had to save face as we're sure the WEST MEMPHIS THREE would have been acquitted. THE WEST MEMPHIS THREE are not the first to have been manipulated into admitting to a crime they did not commit, many people on lesser charges are given these plea bargains as long as they admit to guilt when they are in reality innocent or or over charged so some prosecuting attorney with a big ego can have a W or conviction for his record. Charges of guilt when innocent or being over charged look way worse theoretically on paper compared to when someone considers circumstances . There are times when a bench trial, or trial via jury is not only a right but could be to the benefit of the defendant, both the defense attorney and prosecuting attorney discourage the defendant from trial because it's political and very competitive regarding a stubborn prosecutor who states if you lose in a trail you get the highest sentence. In the end, it's a gamble, as it often it has nothing to do with justice. ECHOLS didn't want to gamble with his life, understandable. It starts with prejudice in communities and prejudiced cops and that needs to end.
I wish Damien Echols, Jessie and Jason Baldwin the best TRANSITION into the real world, therapy, education and job training programs geared towards "convicted felons". I hope, Baldwin, Echols and Misskelley, if they're still interested get to see METALLICA.
We've all seen and experienced "travesties of justice" in even lesser cases. Some of us have lost relatives to murders and would like to see real justice.
The death penalty is controversial, I'm not for nor against the death penalty but I'm for DNA testing and the Innocence Protection Act.

Thanks-Stay Metal, Stay Brutal-\m/