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My Life Story
Vol 1
Damien Echols
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New York Lincoln Shanghai
Almost Home
My Life Story
Copyright © 2005 by Damien Echols
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Contents
Foreword. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vi
Preface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .x
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xiii
I . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1
II. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5
III. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7
IV. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9
V. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11
VI. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13
VI. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16
VIII. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20
IX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21
X. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .24
XI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28
XII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32
XIII. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .36
XIV. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .40
XV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .43
XVI. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .50
iv
Damien Echols v
XVII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .54
XVIII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .58
XVIV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .63
XX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .74
XXI. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .86
XXII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .95
XXIII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .99
XXIV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .101
XXV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .106
XXVI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .108
XXVII. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .110
XXVIII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .112
XXVIV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .120
XXX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .127
XXXI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .129
XXXII. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .137
XXXIII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .146
XXXIV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .151
Foreword
ThefirsttimeHBOairedthedocumentary“ParadiseLost—TheChildMurders
of Robin Hood Hills,” I was living in the Hollywood Hills, miles and a millen-
nium away from stories like these. There is a certain lurid fascination I have
always had with crime and criminals, and I had recently found a home in the
City of Broken Dreams, where the Manson Family and the Black Dahlia ruled
the sickly jaded pop culture of Los Angeles in the early 90s. I had not been pre-
paredforthetragictaleoftheseboys,whoarenowreferredtoastheWestMem-
phis Three.
Filmmakers Joe Berlinger and Bruce Sinofsky did an incredibly balanced por-
trayalofthetrialandconvictionofDamienEchols,JasonBaldwinandJesseMis-
skelley.Thedocumentarycommented neitheronthepossibleinnocence orguilt
of the three, who were tried as adults for the heinous murders of three younger
boys, Christopher Byers, Steven Branch and Michael Moore. Berlinger and
Sinofskydidwhatgreatdocumentaryfilmmakersdo,document.Theyshot,kept
shooting,kepteyesonallwhowereinvolvedinacasethatwasobviouslyincredi-
bly doomed from the start.
No evidence linked the West Memphis Three to the murders, besides an admis-
sion of guilt by Jesse Misskelley (who possesses an IQ level of 73), forced out of
him after twelve consecutive hours of questioning, with only the last forty five
minutes put on tape. It was more a fabricated rendition of what the law officers
wanted to believe happened that terrible day in Arkansas, than a confession. It
wassomethingtoappeasethelocalcommunity,lockedina“SatanicPanic”likea
scene out of “The Crucible,” a vigilante mob looking for a witch to burn, who
wanted justice even if that justice was actually unjust. This pitiful piece of “evi-
dence”wasenoughtoconvictallthreeofcapitalmurderandresultedinlifesen-
tences for Jesse and Jason, and death by lethal injection for Damien Echols,
scheduled for the year 2000.
Iwasoutraged.Yet,itseemedasifthedocumentarywouldhavebeenenoughto
exonerate these kids. The truth was blatantly there, on the screen, and couldn’t
vi
Damien Echols vii
be denied. I thought the justice system would soon undo its wrongs, because I
believedinAmericathen,somuchmorethanIdonow.Myroommatemademe
aprayerbox,withaphotographofthestilladolescentDamienonastringinside.
Later,Ifoundalargepaperbackthatformedakindofyearbookforallthedeath
row inmates in America awaiting execution. Damien’s photograph and name
wereinthebook,nowalmosttwoyearsafterthecasehadgonetotrial.Then,the
second documentary “Paradise Lost II: Revelations” aired on HBO. This film
focusedonthewakeoftheconvictions,theformationofFreetheWestMemphis
Three organization by Burk Sauls, Kathy Bakken and Grove Pashley, the system
of appeals the now young men were facing, their reflections on their unjust sen-
tencing and the incredulousness of the different groups of people who identified
with the WM3. It seemed that having long black hair, a love of heavy metal
music and a tendency toward esoteric reading could get you the death penalty,
and the backlash was starting mobilize.
The sequel also carefully studied the idiosyncratic and suspicious behavior of
MarkByers,stepfatherofoneoftheslainboys,whosewifehaddiedmysteriously
afterthetrial,andwhowasaccusedlaterofforcingtwoyoungboystofighteach
otherandabusinganotherfamily’schild.Byersiscurrentlyservingtimeinprison
foranumberofotherunrelatedoffenses.Afterviewingthisfilm,Istillsomehow
believed that the justice system would correct itself, that the movement to free
theinnocentwasenoughandthatAmericawoulddorightbythelaw.Ithought
possibly a third documentary would be in pre-production, one that would be
about the day the WM3 would walk out of prison, no longer incarcerated by an
intolerantandridiculouscourtthatcouldlettherealkillergofree,thinkingthat
convenient scapegoats (who did not have the funds for proper legal representa-
tion, let alone costly forensic testing) would be enough to appease not only the
community of West Memphis, but justice itself.
The third film is starting production. The Berlinger-Sinofsky team has gone on
to make a documentary about Metallica, who generously donated their music to
Paradise I & II, and hopefully III, and two feature films are in pre-production
about the WM3. The website WM3.org flourishes, and celebrities like Eddie
VedderandWinonaRyderhavechampionedthecausewithspeechesandconsid-
erable financial donations. Many articles, essays, compendiums, and books,
includingthedefinitive“TheDevil’sKnot,”byMaraLeveritt,havebeenwritten
on this compelling and disgraceful miscarriage of justice, about the discrimina-
Damien Echols viii
tionofthosewhoare“different”inacommunitywhereconformityislawandfar
more restrictive than anything that is on the books.
More than a decade after learning about this travesty, I decided to write to
Damien Echols. I made a donation to his defense fund, and bought him some
booksfromhisAmazonwishlist.Hewrotebacktothankme,andaskedifIwas
a comedian. I said that I was, and that I had been following the case for many
years, and could not understand why he was still on death row.
We became fast friends. I wanted to know how he was doing, how he survived,
how he could still retain a sense of humor and continue to develop as a human
being in such a desperate climate. He granted me an interview on my website,
and we now regularly have dialogues from his cell on death row. His words are
read by countless people around the world, typed into my computer, from his
tiny, elegant script, always on long, yellow legal pads. It is humbling, for he has
never seen the internet.
IrealizethatItakesomuchforgranted,likelife,forinstance.Somehavenotthat
luxury. I imagine that being on death row is like having a terminal disease, and
theracetofindacureisrunningalongsideyou,sometimesfast,orslow,depend-
ing on whatever else is happening. You gain, you lose. Momentum is both your
savior and your nemesis. How does one live with that?
Wewritetoeachotheronanalmostdailybasis.Itisallmerelymyquestions,and
his answers. I wanted to hear more, because his story has been told by so many,
butnotyetbyhim.Hisstoryisfarmorethanagrossmiscarriageofjustice,buta
tale of uncommon wisdom and redemption, faith and love, forgiveness and a
diverse passion for Wagner and hair bands like Kixx and Skid Row.
Damien Echols is a holy man, as well as a complex, hilarious, erudite, brilliant,
forthright, seeker of knowledge and truth. He also secretly loves pro-wrestling!
His capacity for understanding and tolerance run deeper than any other “guru
how-to” I have ever spent my self help money on. He and his wife, Lorri Davis,
have become sort of a surrogate family for me. Their bond is tremendously lov-
ing, and they remind me of my husband and myself. We are a mirror image,
althoughtheirreflectionisdistortedbyinjusticeandthereversalthatinhiscase,
Damienwasguiltybeforebeingallowedtobeproveninnocent.Ifwearetheland
Damien Echols ix
ofthefree,theWestMemphisThreemustbereleased.Theyarepoliticalprison-
ers, and until they are free, none of us are free.
Damien Echols is the Heavy Metal Dalai Lama, the Nelson Mandela of Rock
andRoll,theDeepakChopraofDeathRow.Hekeepsequanimityandcompas-
sioninaplacewheremostwouldhavelosttheirmindsandsomanyhavealready
losttheirlives.Hisspiritualpracticeisinspiringinitsabilitytoallowhimtocope
with what would be literally hell for everyone else. He has become my teacher.
Allow him to become yours.
Freedom, justice and love will prevail.
Margaret Cho
May, 2004
