Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory Page #14

jail, we will plead guilty. "

I am David laser,

Circuit judge,

division nine,

The second

judicial district

Of the state

of Arkansas.

Subject to the court's

approval,

Certain dispositive agreements

have been reached

By and between the state and

the defendants in this case.

The Alford plea-

It's a guilty plea with

a profession of innocence.

If you would, please,

Mr. Echols,

Mr. Baldwin,

Mr. Miskelly,

If you would stand,

please...

Mr. Echols, how do you

wish to plead in this case?

Mr. Baldwin, how do you

choose to plead in this case?

The same as relates

to you, Mr. Miskelly,

How do you wish

to plead?

All right, thank you. The court

finds each of the defendants

Guilty of first degree murder

and the modified charges...

( voice fades )

At this moment the west

Memphis three are free.

Female anchor:
okay, so just

for clarity, then, David,

It's not that these

convictions were overturned.

They are still guilty,

but they were freed.

Now this- At the root

of this change

Is DNA. Evidence

Or lack thereof.

Is that correct?

Male reporter:
that was

one of the last things

That came to the court's

attention this year.

Now, if they did not go

through with this deal today,

Those three would have been

probably granted

A new trial

later this year.

But that trial could have

taken years to complete.

So the judge-

Again, reiterating,

"This was in the best interests,"

he said, "for everyone. "

This is not right.

And the people of Arkansas

need to stand up and raise hell,

Because three

innocent men

Are gonna have to

claim today

That they're guilty

for a crime they didn't know,

And that's bullshit.

- Woman:
amen.

- ( Crowd cheering )

They're innocent.

They did not kill my son.

And this is wrong

What the state of Arkansas

is doing

To cover their ass.

And Im sick of it.

Because the real killer

is walking around free.

Some are happy, some are angry,

and some are perplexed.

And that's the case

at the end of every trial.

And this one is

no different.

Guilt or innocence

was never on the table.

Today's proceedings

allows the defendants

To have the freedom to say

that they're not guilty,

But in fact

they just pled guilty.

The legal tangle

that has become known

As the west Memphis three

case is now finished.

Woman:
Damien, with the Alford plea,

You had to say,

for the court's purpose,

That you're guilty

of a crime

That you professed to the judge

that you did not commit.

- Right.

- Is this justice?

Is this what

you've been looking for?

Is it bittersweet?

It's not perfect. It's

not perfect by any means.

But at least

it brings closure

To some areas

and some aspects.

You know, we can still

bring up new evidence.

We can still continue the

investigations we've been doing.

We can still try

to clear our names.

The only difference is now

we can do it from the outside

Instead of having to

sit in prison and do it.

You know, this has been

going on for over 18 years,

And it's-

It's been an absolute

living hell.

Joe Berlinger:
were you concerned

about the evidence that the defense

Was going to present at the

upcoming evidentiary hearing,

Including juror misconduct-

Allegations of juror misconduct?

Scott Ellington:
when the supreme

court handed down this decision

On November the 4th

of last year,

Reopening issues

of juror misconduct

And everything-

And all these other matters

On the basis

of new DNA,

Then that caused some-

Some troubles.

And this judge was most likely

going to grant a new trial.

And if this judge

granted a new trial,

The defendants

most likely-

I mean, we would do the best we

could to prevail on the evidence,

But most likely

these defendants,

The state believes,

Could very easily

have been acquitted.

- Yes, ma'am.

- Woman:
will the state continue

To investigate this case if

additional information's brought forth

Or is the case closed?

I have no reason to believe

that there was anyone else

Involved in the homicide

of these three children

But the three defendants

who pled guilty today.

Let me just point out one

aspect of what happened today:

These men

not only walked out,

They created today,

by this plea, to me,

Proof positive

of their innocence

And the state's

recognition of it.

Because does anyone

believe

That if the state had

even the slightest

Continuing conviction

that they were guilty,

That they would let

these men free today?

It would've never

happened.

But to me, the state's

acceptance of an Alford plea,

In which they maintain

their innocence,

And releasing them,

is evidence

Of the state's recognition

of their innocence.

Woman:
what does this mean for

the state of Arkansas today?

The significance

of this case

And that this is over today

- What does this mean?

Well, I think

for the benefit

Of the state

of Arkansas

And the office

that I represent,

It means that

we have terminated

Prolonged litigation;

We have terminated additional

appeals and appeal hearings.

We've also,

as part of the-

I mean, with their entry

of a plea of guilty,

We have removed

the question

Of them filing a civil

lawsuit against the state

That could result in

many millions of dollars.

I can't say that that

wasn't part of my thinking

In resolving this case

for the best of this state

And for trying to move this

case forward and end it.

This was not justice,

you know.

In the beginning we told nothing

but the truth- That we were innocent-

And they sent us to prison for

the rest of our lives for it.

And then we had to

come here,

And the only thing that the

state would do for us was to say,

"Hey, we'll let you go

only if you admit guilt. "

And that's not justice,

no matter how you look at it.

They're not out there

trying to find

Who really murdered

those boys.

And I did not want to take

the deal from the get-Go.

However,

They're trying

to kill Damien.

And sometimes you just gotta

bite the gun to save somebody.

I want to publicly

thank Jason, too,

Just to let him know that I

do acknowledge what he did,

That he did want

to keep fighting.

He didn't want to take

this deal in the beginning.

And I recognize

and acknowledge

That he did do it

almost entirely for me.

Thank you.

( Cheering )

Jason:
there's something very wrong

With our

judicial system today.

People have prejudices.

People have fears.

People have hates.

These things cloud

our ability to reason.

We also have

Compassion,

Love, mercy.

But what makes it

so difficult

In the judicial system

Is that the people who are

there to protect and serve-

They get

so desensitized

And they lose

the ability to reason.

There's gotta be a way

to reawaken the compassion

In the people who run

our justice system.

Under the state seal

of Arkansas,

On the banner,

it says

"Justice" on one hand

And "mercy"

on the other.

Justice is lost.

It's broken.

My case in point: I told

the truth that Im innocent-

Rate this script:0.0 / 0 votes