Interesting case....

I was not there at the killings.. I was not there at the trial... I have never met anyone associated with this case... I do recall when the murders of these three young boys took place and the news coverage that followed through the years...

I did watch with a great deal of interest the three documentaries on this case that were obviously leaning towards the view that the three men charged and convicted in these crimes were innocent.

My initial reaction was to try and stay neutral and in that I succeeded I do believe. The documentaries seemed to provide a great deal of evidence that the men were indeed innocent of these murders, but of course that was the whole point. I have never seen a documentary that focused on why they are guilty, so to make a decision is somewhat hard to do. In that respect, I still have to say it could have been either way...

The documentaries and the attention focused on the three convicted men would definitely have caused the three convicted men to continually say they were innocent for the sole reason to be released from prison. On the other hand, if they were innocent, they would of course say they were innocent. So in the end it would be my view that the whole murder, trial and aftermath is still up for grabs.

Mr. Misskelley did after all give a confession, he got the facts wrong on several points, which may have been because of his reported low IQ level. Was he coerced ? I'll never know, I was not there. It did seem that he was being led through his answers on several points that were crucial to the prosecutors. But then again, the police can use interrogation techniques that include telling lies and bending the truth to gain useful information. I do not condemn the police for using these tactics, it is after all, completely legal. Misskelley should never have spoken to the police more than 10 minutes before requesting an attorney. His mistake, not the police. He did recant later on, but that is trying to unring a bell. He had his rights and he let them blow away in the wind. The police had no evidence whatsoever and this man gave them everything they needed to arrest him and the other two.

The other part of this documentary was the continued focus on Chris Byers stepfather, John Byers. The film was ready to roll every time this guy opened his mouth and he was in my opinion a very sketchy person from the start. His rants throughout the films are rather embarrassing and did nothing to undermine his status as a suspect in the film makers eyes. Even I was praying that he would just shut up and act a little bit under control. Him and his wife seemed to come alive as the film makers turned on the cameras and gave performances that were worthy of an Oscar. Still, I have not had a child murdered and do not know how my reaction would be any different. In the end, after all the rants and yelling, Mr. Byers has by now totally reversed his opinion on these three convicted men... Go figure...

The other notable suspect in the film makers eyes was the other father, Terry Hobbs. He also seemed a little suspicious and his lawsuit against the Dixie Chicks member for slander was just the needed opening for the lawyers to open his life wide open for examination, and again just showed another individual who needed to keep his mouth shut. Good Lord, the guy shot someone !!! His claim of non violence at that point was totally destroyed.

In the end I saw a bunch of uneducated people who suffered a horrible loss of their children due to a brutal murder and film makers who would present this as some weird form of entertainment. The parents and their friends and family, the supporters and their hangers on all left me with very little pity towards anyone except the three murdered children who should have been the main focus all along. More photos of the dead children were shown than photos while they were still alive.

And when it is all said and done, I will never live in the state of Arkansas after what I saw presented in these films, they all seemed lost in a 1950's time warp of bewilderment, side show theatrics, heavy duty religion, and ignorance....



southbound