Paradise Lost
Upon viewing the documentary, "Paradise Lost", one of my first impressions was a feeling of shock at the hysteria surrounding the case, and how heavily it impacted the trial. Another area of concern was the tenuous (or nonexistent) evidence tying these youths to these horrible murders. The entire essence of the prosecution's case was a confession of questionable authenticity by Jessie Misskelley, Jr, coupled with a community-based fear of a satanic ritual having occurred. Such trials and convictions, sadly, are not new in the American experience. Many such mockeries of justice have taken place in our history, the most infamous being, of course, the Salem witch trials. Fortunately, the extremely weak bases for the convictions of the defendants are being systematically torn down, thanks to the appeals process. It is still disturbing to note, however, that an entire community can be thrown into a panic, based solely on fear and ignorance coupled with sensationalism. One of the most interesting pieces of data that my research has turned up is a very compelling, meticulously researched, and extremely detailed forensic
5. The lack of any evidence of sexual assault. The only victim with any overt signs of sexual assault was Chris Byers, and as stated earlier, this may have been more an act of rage than of deviance. Neither of the other two victims showed any signs of sexual assault. It is my belief, after researching this case, that the three youths convicted of this crime, one of whom is now sitting on death row, are innocent; and the real killers are most likely still free. In fact, the evidence tends to point to at least Chris Byers' stepfather, and even possibly his mother, as the real assailants. Ironically (or maybe not), Melissa Byers died under "mysterious circumstances" only short time ago. Her death has been categorized as being of a suspicious nature, but as of this time, no one has been accused or charged. Meanwhile, Jessie Misskelley, Damien Echols, and Charles Baldwin are in prison, their cases on appeal. 4. The presence of older injuries. The ME performing the autopsy on Chris Byers noted several healed injuries to the child that may have resulted from parental physical and/or sexual abuse. Mr. Turvey further stated that the nature and rage a
Some common words found in the essay are:
Chris Byers, Paradise Lost, Misskelley Jr, According Turvey, Turvey MS, Steve Branch, Melissa Byers, Chris Byers', Lost Essay, Charles Baldwin, sexual assault, paradise lost, chris byers, signs sexual, bite marks, jessie misskelley, signs sexual assault,
Approximate Word count = 777
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)
|
