. Terry was born on September 11, 1959 in Sweetwater, to Jack Harvey and Marjorie. 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. Attorneys for Echols have submitted a formal request to inspect the records that are available, involving cataloguing of the evidence as well as information on the loss of the evidence. It was a call about Damien Echolshe wasnt dead, but his wife, Lorri Davis, feared he might be soon. This is a story of justice delayed and justice denied. Hobbs was Branch's stepfather. At the suggestion of the police, Hutcheson hid microphones in her home and borrowed occult books from the library to inspire Echols' interest. What a story it is. 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. Earlier this year, he told Action News 5 he welcomes new DNA testing. Investigators never found any evidence that tied him, Jason Baldwin, or Jessie Misskelley to the murders of the boys, Stevie Branch, Michael Moore, and Christopher Byers. "People probably think I'm in Satanism because what they don't understand they try to destroy or ridicule. West Memphis is pretty much like a second Salem," Echols stated in the 1996 documentary Paradise Lost: The Murders at Robin Hood Hills. Well, perhaps not nobody. Terry Hobbs says he is a church member, a father, and working man and in no way a killer. 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. 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. Robin Lynn Jones. But we stuck with it, and every so often something would happen, and little by little, people would come around., They spread word about the website through online discussion groups and by hanging flyers in the art houses that screened Paradise Lost, and by 2000, WM3.org was getting 4,000 to 8,000 hits a day. The reason for the credit gets less curious when hes asked about it: He was a huge Metallica fan. Terry Roland Hobbs, 62, of Sweetwater, passed away on Saturday, September 11, 2021. It was born out of genuine admiration for the fact that these guys took the time out of their lives to dedicate, to go down to Arkansas, to build a website, to really step out of their lives, Berlinger says. Leave your condolences to the family on this memorial page or send flowers to show you care. In 2013, Jackson and Damien Echols produced a fourth documentary about the case. This is the true story of the West Memphis Three murders. I never foresaw that they would in turn save us.. Echols' disdain for authority, penchant for black clothes, and propensity to make shocking statements didn't help his plight. Although the Alford Plea set the West Memphis Three free, they are, at least in the eyes of the law, guilty, and therefore, the state of Arkansas is under no obligation to continue investigating the crimes at this time. Berlinger says that after months of filming, the parents of one of the victims raised the issue of payment. And that makes him hopeful that exoneration is on the horizon. Explore. As for Paradise Lost, it was the inciting incident in the two-decade chain of events that led to the release of the West Memphis Three. This case was filed in U.S. Bankruptcy Courts, Tennessee Western Bankruptcy. There also were issues with other details he provided, including how the victims were bound and whether the boys were raped. The sheer mountain moving amount of money it cost to prove the obvious innocence of Jessie, Jason, and Damien still staggers me. Branded the West Memphis Three, the mens case was featured in multiple documentaries, earning them support from an array of high-profile musicians, celebrities and activists. 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. 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? Essentially, it allows the accused to assert their innocence while pleading guilty, conceding that the prosecution has an overwhelming amount of evidence to procure a conviction. 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. It was so emotionally taxing to watch and go through it again, he says. If the state of Arkansas has a deep and abiding belief that the West Memphis Three are child murderers and did these terrible crimes, then shame on them for letting them out after 18 and a half years because a bunch of celebrities are whining about it, Berlinger says. The IMDb credits page for the first Paradise Lost is modest, but impressive. MEMPHIS, Tenn. (localmemphis.com)More than 25 years after the murders of three 8-year-old boys in West Memphis,a new book gives a first-person account of what was happening behind the scenes. A native of Winter Haven, born December 21, 1964, Terry has been a lifelong resident of Auburndale. Jessie took a polygraph. But the lawyer quickly noticed inconsistencies in Misskelleys purported confession. Websleuths, an online forum for discussions about unsolved homicides and missing-person cases, has more than 100,000 members, and internet vigilantes have used social media and other online breadcrumbs to help track down actual criminals, such as the Canadian murderer and subject of the documentary Dont F*ck With Cats, Luka Magnotta. 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. Even without a smoking gun, the circumstantial evidence was enough for a conviction in a place like Crittenden County, Arkansas. As detailed by The Hollywood Reporter in 2011, Jackson and Walsh helped fund key investigations for the West Memphis Three's defense during the last seven years of their incarceration. Covered in wounds, all three showed signs of having been beaten. (At one point, Sauls says, it landed on Yahoos list of the top 100 websites.) Theres no smoking gun. 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. But inside, he was just another prisonerBaldwin didnt know who he could trust. It was clear that Paradise Lost was resonating. Echols, who prosecutors argued was the ringleader, was sentenced to death. At the request of West Memphis authorities, the two were picked up and questioned by Oceanside police. His net worth has been growing significantly in 2021-2022. The great irony of the 18-year quest to free the West Memphis Three is that it didnt begin as a crusade. Terry Hobbs, Actor: Sleepaway Camp II: Unhappy Campers. In her recantation, Hutcheson stated that when she asked Echols directly if he had killed "those three kids," he replied, "No. 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. I didnt want to stop with us being that close. Damion Echols, Jason Baldwin, and Jessie Misskelley were convicted of murdering the children in 1994. Mike Allen arrived on the scene. Share Memories & Support the Family. Timeline Of The West Memphis Three Victims, Motivations For Investigating The West Memphis Case. 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. 2 The first and likely simplest gauge is continued interest in the case. They werent connected in any direct way, Bakken says. TSGT Terry Lee Hobbs, USAF, ret. When he was released in 2011, he met John Hardin, who worked with the West Memphis Three support group Arkansas Take Action, and the two bonded over a desire to do for others what had just been done for Baldwin. They saw this movie and they felt like, I have to do something.. Because I was thinking, if you haven't done anything, then they can't prove you did something you haven't actually done. 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. Terry Hobbs was born in 1958 and grew up in Northern Arkansas. (Police questioned Byers several times during the investigation, but never considered him a suspect.) Griffis also knew how to spot a Satanist. 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. The state of Arkansas continues to attempt to prevent this testing from happening., New technology and advances in science would now allow us to test DNA in amounts so small that it would have been previously impossible. The West Memphis Police Department interviewed Hobbs, who was dismissive of the findings, claiming the hair could have been picked up during a visit to his home since the victim "played with our little boy regularly," according to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. A later confession during the trial phase would prove equally problematic. 24 to Jun. When we were driving in the car a lot, wed play a lot of the Metallica album Master of Puppets, says Alex Sinofsky, who became a doctor instead of getting behind the camera himself. 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 joint trial of Baldwin and Echols, which took place separately from Misskelleys, Berlinger and Sinofsky filmed the surreal moments that juries were actually present for: a rundown of the books Echols checked out of the library, a parade of band T-shirts worn by the pair, a copy of a Blue Oyster Cult record found in Damiens girlfriends house that became evidence because of the word cult and song titles like Dont Fear the Reaper. What the cameras couldnt capture, however, was the introduction of physical evidencethe prosecution didnt offer much of that aside from a knife that was never directly linked to the crimes and fabric threads deemed microscopically similar to items found in Baldwins and Echolss homes, an assertion that has been questioned in the years since the trials. The Messed Up Truth About The West Memphis Three Murders, citing the discovery of her son's favorite pocket knife, One of the prosecution's key pieces of evidence linking Jason Baldwin, With their 2007 request for a new trial rejected, Baldwin is the co-founder of the legal advocacy organization Proclaim Justice. The boys were so mutilated, investigators thought the murders were part of some kind of Satanic ritual. '", In 1999, a more mature Echols explained the comment. The sneaker ligatures in which Terry Hobbs' DNA was found in," Soury said . Misskelley and Echols were 36; Baldwin was 34. A graveside service will be conducted on Wednesday, March 17 at Cloverdale Memorial Park beginning at 11am. Here's when clocks will 'spring forward' in 2023. I think we were the first internet sleuths, but we were not internet sleuths.. Im seeing the things I experienced, but not through my own point of view. During the trials of Jason Baldwin and Damien Echols, Griffis drew tenuous links between circumstantial evidence, such as the killings taking place near the date of the pagan festival of Beltane. Hobbs says his book is 25 years in the making, adding it is called Boxful of Nightmares for a reason. hangyermoon 2 yr. ago. Leave a sympathy message to the family in the guestbook on this memorial page of Terry Hobbs to show support. Under order of the Arkansas Supreme Court, there were to be new evidentiary hearings in the case. But I had to. But Berlinger also believes that the sequel is important for documenting the power of citizen activism. 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. Investigators kept minimal notes and omitted pertinent details including criminal records. November 03, 2021 November 4, 2021 . Terry Hobbs was born on November 25, 1969 in Columbus, Georgia, USA. No knives and not weapons were used," says Jo Lynn McCaughey. To learn more, watch The Forgotten West Memphis Three on Saturday, March 28 and Sunday, March 29at 8/7c on Oxygen. Sheila Nevins, the HBO exec who pushed for Berlinger and Sinofsky to make that initial trip to Arkansas, is most proud of the companys willingness to let her finance three documentaries over 18 years without knowing where they would go. One of those shows, Truth & Justice With Bob Ruff, became the basis for an Oxygen docuseries last year titled The Forgotten West Memphis Three, which took a closer look at the three victims and tried to shine new light on the evidence. Maines won the lawsuit; police have never named Hobbs a suspect or charged him in connection with the killings.). To send flowers or plant a tree in memory of Terry Hobbs, visit the Tribute Store. Much of Cecil Hotel focuses on the amateur investigators who turned coincidences into conspiracy theories, ultimately accusing an innocent person of her death. Even though they said they didnt murder the three boys, they are technically convicted killers. No explanation has yet been given as to why such a seemingly important lead was dropped. - The West Memphis 3: Free (2012) . In 1996, HBO released the documentary film Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills. February 27, 2023 (82 years old) View obituary. 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. (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.). 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. Terry. Terry Roland Hobbs September 11, 1959 ~ September 11, 2021 (age 62) Terry Roland Hobbs, 62, of Sweetwater, passed away on Saturday, September 11, 2021. Published: Dec. 21, 2021 at 9:56 PM CST WEST MEMPHIS, Ark. Local 24 News EXCLUSIVE: Terry Hobbs on his new memoir on the West Memphis 3. To date, no DNA evidence from the crime scene can be linked to Damien Echols, Baldwin, or Jessie Misskelley. Then youd try to find it, and it didnt exist, because when we went out to discussion groups, no one knew about the case yet., After learning that the teens were still in prison, Bakken, Sauls, and Pashley decided to make full use of the budding technological revolution. Share Memories & Support the Family. Obituaries can vary in the amount of information they contain, but many of them are genealogical goldmines, including information such as: names, dates, place of birth and death, marriage information, and family relationships.
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