The idea of killer teens in the Christian South, not any greater sense of purpose, was mainly what intrigued Sheila Nevins, then the head of HBOs documentary division, when she spotted a story about the case on the inside pages of The New York Times. there are no assignments to cushion your grade, so either pass or fail. Terry Hobbs (1969 - 2019) Sleepaway Camp 2: Unhappy Campers (Nightmare Vacation II) (1988) [Rob Darrinco]: Stabbed and hanged (after gaging), off-screen by Pamela Springsteen in Walter Gotell's office; his body is shown afterwards when Carol Martin Vines discovers him. Echols said in 2012, he will never give up his mission to exonerate himself. Since the West Memphis Three were released, no one else has been charged in the murders of Stevie, Christopher and Michael. Terry Castleman is a data . By the time she got done watching it, her life was forever changed. We didnt see them grow up.. Terry L. Hobbs, 63, of Caldwell, HOBBS, Terry L., passed on March 7,2021 at the age of 63. I don't entirely think Hobbs did it, but I . https://t.co/dXOtQkmjee. WEST MEMPHIS, Ark. Case Details. Hide Self (6 credits) 2012 48 Hours: Hard Evidence (TV Series) Self. He was an actor, known for Sleepaway Camp II: Unhappy Campers (1988), Fast Food (1989) and In the Heat of the Night (1988). Over the course of the initial investigation, a number of alternate suspects and scenarios came to light that were largely ignored or otherwise dismissed by authorities. They asked to see a cut, and they immediately said, Not only are we going to let you use all that music, but were not going to charge you anything for it., Metallica would be the first celebrities to throw their support behind the West Memphis Three, but they were far from the last. The test results showed that no genetic material on the crime scene evidence was a match to Echols, Baldwin or Misskelley, reported the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Hobbs said, I still believe in my heart that Jessie, Jason, and Damion, 'Feels Like Home:' electrical failure from a light fixture caused December fire that killed 1, Shelby County reporting an increase in drug-related overdoses, largely due to fentanyl, Severe weather threat is over | Prepare for a sunny weekend, Daylight saving time starts soon. Terry Roland Hobbs September 11, 1959 ~ September 11, 2021 (age 62) Terry Roland Hobbs, 62, of Sweetwater, passed away on Saturday, September 11, 2021. During the final year of the two-year span, from July 2021 to July 2022, California lost about 211,000 people, according to data from the state Department of Finance. By the end of Paradise Lost, you cant believe they were found guilty, Bakken says. It's affected a lot of lives, but for some reason it keeps being brought up," said Hobbs. They were found nude and hogtied in a creek in a wooded area in West Memphis. Pam Hobbs divorced Terry Hobbs in 2004 and has reversed her position on the West Memphis Three's guilt. Even without a smoking gun, the circumstantial evidence was enough for a conviction in a place like Crittenden County, Arkansas. Certain that, under what he felt were ridiculous circumstances, Echols' confidence and, on occasion, flippant attitude during the trial was often misinterpreted as evidence of his coldness toward the victims and their families. While police had focused on Echols and Baldwin in the intervening weeks because of their reputation, the arrests came largely because of a confession by Misskelley, which was leaked to the largest newspaper in the area, the Memphis Commercial Appeal, and ran under the banner headline Teen describes cult torture of boys. At a press conference shortly after the arrests, the lead investigator was asked how confident he felt about the case on a scale of 1-10. Mara Leveritt, a journalist who followed the case throughout the 1990s and wrote the 2002 book Devils Knot: The True Story of the West Memphis Three, calls the strain of Christianity that runs through the region very literal and says that even her children faced harassment as teenagers for playing Dungeons & Dragons and listening to Ozzy Osbourne. Terry Hobbs is absolutely terrible. She said it was one of the highest-rated pieces they had. Berlinger also concedes Revelations had some ethical problems, chiefly because it raised the possibility that Mark Byers committed the killings. Hobbs says his book is 25 years in the making, adding it is called Boxful of Nightmares for a reason. Armchair detectives of today, I think a lot of them dabble in conspiracy theory, Berlinger says. While thats cooled from the days of concerts in the shadows of the Arkansas Supreme Court building, the documentaries still live on HBO Max, where they pull in new viewers to this day. Metallica had never licensed a song for a film before, but when they learned about the case, Berlinger says, they made an exception. In this first confession, Miskelley often agreed to details suggested by the police or attributed to prior statements which he did not make. The case status is Pending - Other Pending. Terry Hobbs passed away in Nampa, Idaho. Today, Berlinger calls Revelations the weakest of the three films in the trilogyadvocacy in search of a story as opposed to the in-the-moment, on-the-ground approach of the first Paradise Lost and the in-depth exploration of new evidence in 2011s Purgatory. Robin Lynn Jones. The evolution of how the teens were perceivedon behalf of both the filmmakers and even part of the defense teamis captured on camera early as Stidham and his colleagues began to consider whether Misskelleys confession had been coerced. More than 2,500 people attended and the story dominated the local press for days. And the seemingly endless stream of threats against them and the frequent clashes with Mark Byers did nothing to dissuade them. The prosecutor would later say, There was a lack of physical evidence to tie anyone or anything to the crime scene, while the lead investigatorthe same one who told the press the case was an 11 out of 10would concede, Youve got a lot of circumstantial evidence is what youve got. Over two decades after the murders, what really happened to Stevie Branch, Christopher Byers, and Michael Moore on the evening of May 5, 1993, remains a mystery. He was 56. He said, J.B., youre going home, man, youre going home.. Bray asked her if she knew about rumored cult activity in the community. Mojo had a different idea of what might get the man he affectionately called J.B. out of prison. For Rollins, it was a moral imperative: Id find myself up at 3:30 a.m. thinking about Damien. Although blood scrapings were taken, the West Memphis police lost the evidence. But further down, in the section for the music department, theres a curious inclusion of a consultant who never worked in film again: Alex Sinofsky, the son of Bruce who was 12 at the time of Paradise Losts release. That November, he says, HBO agreed to give an honorariumroughly $5,000to the families on both sides. I couldnt not watch it at this point. Over the years there has been lots of speculation and finger pointing as to who was responsible. Terry Hobbs says he is a church member, a father, and working man and in no way a killer. Sinofsky family connection aside, Berlinger says this was an important part of the film: The prosecutors had put heavy metal lyrics and Baldwins and Echolss Metallica fandom on trial as much as the teens themselves. Lying in the open air in near 80-degree temperatures accelerated the decomposition of the bodies. On the evening of May 5, 1993, three 8-year-old boys disappeared from the streets of West Memphis, Ark. Although Damein Echols had a teenager's typical disdain for authority, he nevertheless trusted that the system would work in his favor. A benefit album was released in 2000, and the phrase made it into a Dawsons Creek episode when Pacey shouted Free the West Memphis Three over an airport intercom. Its like ripping a Band-Aid off a wound. Nobody was saying, This is an outrageous case that needs to be looked into.. (2 weeks at #1, on for 19 weeks!) His net worth has been growing significantly in 2021-2022. She has since expressed her belief that her ex-husband was involved in the murders, citing the discovery of her son's favorite pocket knife in Terry Hobbs' belongings. Mojo, however, was considerably more fired up, believing the same thing many of Paradise Losts viewers did: that the movie showed an incredible miscarriage of justice, one that would surely be fixed. Filming the activists work seemed like the best place for Berlinger and Sinofsky to turn their attention; what better way to show the continued plight of the West Memphis Three than to show regular people dedicating their free time to fighting for them? People have come out of the woodwork and said this and this and people have done things and a lot of them are wrong, said Hobbs. You still dont really know what happened to these kids. of Auburndale, FL passed away Monday, August 16, 2021. On Aug. 11, 2011, the West Memphis Three entered the courtroom for the final time. It allowed them to get out of prison after almost 20 years. Although Griffis' testimony was dramatic, it showed only a tenuous grasp of occult knowledge much of it, including a reference to a cult called "Crytos," was simply made up. In the minds of many, the bizarre nature of the Robin Hood Hills murders could only have been committed by one of Satan's minions. They procured the domain WM3.org and made a website, updating it with whatever information they could track down. Dan Stidham, the original attorney for Misskelley, who would also work on Baldwins and Echols appeals, says he has the answer. They formed the organization Proclaim Justice, a nonprofit that reinvestigates crimes with the hopes of freeing innocent people. The consequences of that online campaign were ruinous: The person they targeted, a Mexican metal musician who worked under the name Morbid, was harassed into hiding. Jessie took a polygraph. But on the subject of Paradise Lost, he speaks emphatically: He understands how important the movies were in helping him, Echols, and Misskelley walk free 10 years ago this August. Best selling books such as Lawrence Pazder's Michelle Remembers and disgraced evangelical comedian Mike Warnke's The Satan Seller fueled the madness with tales of ritual abuse and human sacrifice. The following day revealed the unthinkable, when the bloodied and bruised bodies of the three boys were found submerged in a muddy creek in a wooded area called Robin Hood Hills. As reported by the Arkansas Times, examination of the shoe laces used to bind Michael Moore contained hair "not inconsistent" with that of Stevie Branch's stepfather, Terry Hobbs. Terry was born on September 11, 1959 in Sweetwater, to Jack Harvey and Marjorie Hobbs .Terry graduated from Sweetwater High School in 1977. McCaughey says her sister is very upset. By getting to the story quickly, the directors were able to document the post-arrest period and two trials that followed in painstaking detail. Because I was thinking, if you haven't done anything, then they can't prove you did something you haven't actually done. Critics were effusive in their praise and stunned by the footageparticularly Roger Ebert, who wrote in a four-star review that at the end of the film I was unconvinced of their guilt. The film won Emmy and Peabody awards to go with more than a dozen other nominations. Bakken immediately showed her friends Burk Sauls and Grove Pashley, who were both equally gripped by what they had just watched. In June 1996, Paradise Lost debuted on HBO, bringing the story of the West Memphis Three to TV sets and showing the power of the camera in the courtroom. Now, I see they can. That there were three victims was a link to the biblical number of the beast. I had a big box. He graduated from Sweetwater High School in 1977. According to Dan Stidham, the attorney for Misskelley, that money became essential for the cash-strapped defense teams, who needed to pay for expert witnesses and other expenses. They were released after prosecutors agreed to an Alford plea, in which the men maintained their innocence but pleaded guilty. hangyermoon 2 yr. ago. Rollins not only gave interviews to keep the effort alive in the press, he organized a string of benefit shows and released an album featuring Iggy Pop and Chuck D, with proceeds going to the defense. Some believe the West Memphis Three are guilty to this day, and others, including some victims family members, point to their innocence and maintain the real perpetrator is still at large. For the next two hours and 29 minutes, the two inmates sat in near silence watching Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills, the landmark documentary released on HBO 25 years ago this week that captured the trials of Baldwin, Jessie Misskelley Jr., and Damien Echols, the three teenagers convicted in 1994 of the crimes that ripped through the small, working-class community of West Memphis, Arkansas. The news was devastating beyond just word of his friends suffering. Baldwins attorneys even avoided putting him on the witness stand or mounting much of a defense, believing the burden was on the state. Damion Echols, Jason Baldwin, and Jessie Misskelley were convicted of murdering the children in 1994. But it wasnt in the ways its directors had hoped. I deeply admire that and I thought it was worthy of putting on film.. Years of solitary confinement and the abuse he said he suffered at the hands of prison guards had taken its toll. The idea of the average citizen becoming embroiled in a criminal investigation isnt far-fetched in 2021, decades removed from the launch of WM3.org. A murderer was loose in West Memphis. We use cookies and other tracking technologies to improve your browsing experience on our site, show personalized content and targeted ads, analyze site traffic, and understand where our audiences come from. A theory held is that Terry Hobbs was the one who actually killed the three boys and had pinned it on the Memphis 3 boys. Baldwin remembers the dire circumstances laid out during the call. Creator Payne Lindsey, a filmmaker with no previous experience investigating crimes, had no connection to the victim before he discovered her while Googling cold cases in hopes of finding his own version of runaway successes like Serial and Making a Murderer. (At one point, Sauls says, it landed on Yahoos list of the top 100 websites.) It's one. Two questions plagued the conservative, middle-class community: Why would anyone commit such a heinous act, and, more importantly, who? Griffis also knew how to spot a Satanist. Explore. The governor of the state of Arkansas who will one day pardon the West Memphis Three is probably in junior high right now, he says. The story felt personal for all of them, but especially Sauls: He had grown up in Florida and Georgia as an outcast obsessed with art and reading some of the same books Damien Echols had. Now a judgewho coincidentally works part time in the courtroom where Misskelley was convictedStidham spends time speaking to law students about the judicial system. The boys were so mutilated, investigators thought the murders were part of some kind of Satanic ritual. They began attending appeal hearings and visiting Baldwin, Echols, and Misskelley in prison. Two of the West Memphis Three's most ardent supporters were director Peter Jackson, best known for The Lord of the Rings films, and his partner Fran Walsh. Once there got to be this global pressure, and there was a big concert here with really big-name musicians within a mile of our Supreme Court building, things started suddenly to change, she says. It was clear that Paradise Lost was resonating. Hes subdued when discussing the facts of the case, but he comes alive while recounting his work with the Jaycees while in prison, or buying Metallicas Black Album when it came out in 1991. Hobbs, with the help of an author, put all that journaling intoa book about the 1993 murders of his stepson Stevie Branch, and Branchs friends Michael Moore and Chris Byers. Self. Much of Cecil Hotel focuses on the amateur investigators who turned coincidences into conspiracy theories, ultimately accusing an innocent person of her death. She also stated that beyond the single meeting at her trailer, she had no further contact with Echols. Yes, the West Memphis Three are out of prison, but as long as they are considered guilty in the eyes of the state, the case is closed, meaning no further investigation can occur. By 2005, Rollins himself had raised $100,000 for the cause. We are sad to announce that on September 11, 2021 we had to say goodbye to Terry Hobbs of Sweetwater, Texas. He also lost the defamation case because of his violent past. Hobbs was Branch's stepfather. Baldwin remembers grabbing a Mountain Dew and a burrito and sitting down, still unaware of what he was about to watch. ", According to Devil's Knot, a week after the discovery of the bodies, Detective Don Bray interviewed Vicki Hutcheson, a truckstop employee. I never foresaw that they would in turn save us.. In her recantation, Hutcheson stated that when she asked Echols directly if he had killed "those three kids," he replied, "No. No explanation has yet been given as to why such a seemingly important lead was dropped. Spotting a small, black tennis shoe in the water, Jones radioed for help. In fact, for the better part of 1993, it was nearly impossible to find anyone who believed they were innocent. It just needed a catalyst. Terry Hobbs, the stepfather of eight-year-old victim Stevie Branch, has been named in documents released in Marian, Arkansas by the attorneys for Pam Hobbs, Stevie's mother. Local 24 News EXCLUSIVE: Terry Hobbs on his new memoir on the West Memphis 3. Terry Hobbs was born in 1958 and grew up in Northern Arkansas. Replacing Burnett was Circuit Court Judge David Laser. This is a brand new website dedicated to the internationally famous musician, Terry Gibbs. 2012 West of Memphis (Documentary) Self - Steven Branch's Stepfather. Its affected a lot of lives, but for some reason it keeps being brought up, said Hobbs. The footage included raw jailhouse interviews with the defendants, strategy sessions held by legal teams on both sides, and extended monologues from Mark Byers, the tall, goateed stepfather of one of the victims, who spoke as though he were reciting the Book of Revelation and who, at one point in Paradise Lost, fired a handgun at a pumpkin while reciting the names of the accused. (Its worth noting that despite the issues raised by Lindseys work, the first season of Up and Vanished renewed interest in the case, which ultimately led to arrests, albeit of people that Lindsey hadnt previously covered on the podcast.). Michelle McNamara helped crack the Golden State Killer case by poring over thousands of pages of case files while working on her book Ill Be Gone in the Dark, which was published two years after her 2016 death, while Chris Lambert and his podcast Your Own Backyard were highlighted by authorities after two arrests in April in connection with the 1996 disappearance of Cal Poly student Kristin Smart. Also part of the plea was the provision that the three could not sue the state. Make a life-giving gesture They were releasedfrom prison in 2011 on whats called an Alford plea, after new forensic evidence was presented as part of the case. October 14, 2017: #26 on the JazzWeek chart! " (Detective Allen) told me if I knew anything, that there was a $35,000 reward, and if I could help them out, we'd get the money," said Misskelley, as quoted by Mara Leveritt in Devil's Knot. A native of Winter Haven, born December 21, 1964, Terry has been a lifelong resident of Auburndale. Mike Allen arrived on the scene. Despite the best efforts of the police, dozens of volunteers, a search-and-rescue team, and a helicopter dispatched from nearby Memphis, Tenn., searchers came up empty handed. None of the three believed that, but Echolss healthand the possibility that even if he survived, he would still be on death row should the fight for retrials failmade it an imperative. Get all your true crime news from Oxygen. But its closing moments point to how the filmmakers felt: that a horrific tragedy had just been compounded by a monumental miscarriage of justice. Unfortunately, for three teen outsiders, the West Memphis Police Department chose to focus on the cult angle to the detriment of their efforts to investigate the other two, more likely scenarios. But on that early morning in 1997, Jason Baldwin wasnt concerned with Berlinger and Sinofskys craft, or legal precedent, or crusading celebrities. I went to a Baptist school and I got accused of being a devil worshiper because I was trying to learn how to write hieroglyphics, says Sauls, today a screenwriter and VFX designer. I didnt want to stop with us being that close. Little kids will be looking under their bed 'Damien might be under there! Investigators kept minimal notes and omitted pertinent details including criminal records. In the Bible Belt, the Satanic Panic took hold with a vengeance. Paso Robles, California. Its my perspective of what happened in 1993, 26 years ago in West Memphis, Arkansas, said Hobbs. The districts current prosecuting attorney, Keith Chrestman, did not respond to requests for comment for this article, but his predecessor Scott Ellington, whose office negotiated the deals, told The New York Times in 2011 that while new trials would have likely resulted in acquittals, We dont think that there is anybody else. The Moore family has been outspoken about the end result, vehemently protesting the 2012 Oscar nomination for the third Paradise Lost installment. The great irony of the 18-year quest to free the West Memphis Three is that it didnt begin as a crusade. After roughly 18 months of editing, Paradise Lost debuted at Sundance in January 1996 before heading out to other festivals. Last year, I noticed that Terry went missing. And that makes him hopeful that exoneration is on the horizon. "They said close to the crime scene because at one time I did walk near where they had found the kids with Terry Hobbs But I didn't wear hats back then, my hair could have blown around anywhere, Jacoby told Memphis NBC affiliate WMC-TV in 2013. Terry. Baldwin and Misskelley were sentenced to life without parole while Echols received the death penalty. Jesse was gonna take it anyway. At the request of West Memphis authorities, the two were picked up and questioned by Oceanside police. Its gone from a controversial legal theory to an accepted phenomenon. Echols' disdain for authority, penchant for black clothes, and propensity to make shocking statements didn't help his plight. . So with less urgency surrounding full exoneration and no documentary cameras rolling, the question 25 years later becomes: Who is paying close enough attention to the case to pick up the fight? TSGT Terry Lee Hobbs, USAF, ret. Create your free profile and get access to exclusive content. On the evening of May 5, 1993, 8-year-olds Stevie Branch, Christopher Byers and Michael Moore went missing in West Memphis, Arkansas. Except this was 1996, and home internet was still in its infancy. Terry Roland Hobbs, 62, of Sweetwater, passed away on Saturday, September 11, 2021. Berlinger says that after months of filming, the parents of one of the victims raised the issue of payment. Example video title will go here for this video. He began his career in the. February 27, 2023 (76 years old) View obituary. Unaware of what was to come, Allen explained that he just wanted to ask him some questions. Among them was a disoriented, muddy, and bleeding African-American man who stumbled into a West Memphis Bojangles restaurant men's room less than a mile from the crime scene. There have also been several high-profile incidents of laypeople reinvestigating decades-old cold cases in more rigorous, journalistic ways and helping bring them to a resolution. He says his students seem to have a better grasp on the idea of coerced confessions than any of his peers in 1994. Terry Wayne Hobbs was born on May 21st, 1958. That the slain boys were each 8 years-old was important because eight was a "witch's number." I just checked again and HE IS STILL MISSING. In February, Netflix released Berlingers Crime Scene: The Vanishing at the Cecil Hotel, a docuseries that looked at the 2013 death of Elisa Lam, a Canadian student who died while vacationing in Los Angeles. It ranges from Mark Byers, the crusading stepfather who became one of the West Memphis Threes biggest allies in the years before his 2020 death, to famed FBI criminal profiler (and Mindhunter inspiration) John E. Douglas. Although she was unable to recall the exact location or anyone who attended the alleged meeting, she claimed a drunken Echols confessed to the murders. (WJHG) By Nikki Sheaks Published: Jul. Bakken and Sauls say they tried to avoid offering theories about the case publicly, opting instead to try to work through official channels. The idea of the average citizen becoming embroiled in a criminal investigation isn't far-fetched in 2021, . Due to marital problems stemming from Stevies death, the couple divorced in 2004, reported CNN. At approximately 1:30 p.m., Steve Jones, a juvenile parole officer from Crittenden County, peered over the steep bank of a water-filled ditch in the woods near the Blue Beacon truck wash. This is not a smoking-gun-type case.. At that time, I was a little naive that what you read in the paper must have some truth to it, and all the press reports coming out of Arkansas were saying that this was like a slam dunk, an open-and-shut case with a confession that was printed in the newspaper.. Griffis also found the devil in nearly every number associated with the crime. After ending his first marriage, he wed Pamela Hicks Branch in 1986, when her son Stevie was almost 2 years old. The second is by looking at it as an act of passion and perseverance. '", In 1999, a more mature Echols explained the comment. Terry Roland Hobbs <p>Terry Roland Hobbs, 62, of Sweetwater, passed away on Saturday, September 11, 2021.</p> <p>Terry was born on September 11, 1959 in Sweetwater, to Jack Harvey and Marjorie Hobbs .Terry graduated from Sweetwater High School in 1977. Throughout the late 1990s and early 2000s, defense attorneys working for the West Memphis Three filed multiple appeals on their behalf scrutinizing the lack of physical evidence against them. The knife was thrown into the lake by Baldwin's mother a year before the murders. One person who has come up in the investigation is Terry Hobbs, although police have never named him a suspect or charged him in connection with the case. Share Memories & Support the Family. Initially, Misskelley repeatedly denied having knowledge of the crime, aside from rumors that Damien Echols was involved. It was a call about Damien Echolshe wasnt dead, but his wife, Lorri Davis, feared he might be soon. Blood and urine samples from both men were collected and sent to the West Memphis Police Department. The nonprofits work hasnt always been easyfundraising is hard, and because hes a convicted felon, hes unable to visit clients in prison or discuss pleasbut its been essential for him as he strives to live the words by 14th-century Persian poet Hafez that he keeps as an email signature: The small man builds cages for everyone he knows / While the sage, who has to duck his head when the moon is low / Keeps dropping keys all night long for the beautiful rowdy prisoners. Baldwin says hes learned that justice isnt a computer programthat you can input all the evidence and testimony and still get the wrong results.
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