The guy who made the confession, and implicated himself and his two friends, is mentally retarded and had a history of substance abuse. He also said the three boys were sodomized, which was not the case.

Misskelley’s confession was so filled with holes it was ruled inadmissible for the trials of the other two men, and used only in Misskelley’s trial. However, some jurors in the cases of Echols and Baldwin have since admitted they were aware of the confession, but did not admit that during jury questioning.

The first movie, Paradise Lost, and the sequel, suggested who some of the people were that police should have been investigating instead. Especially worth a look was John Mark Byers, a stepfather of one of the three (the one most badly mutilated) who has his own share of run-ins with the police. He gave the filmmakers a bloody knife. If memory serves, he also announced that he has had, for no apparent reason, all of his teeth removed and destroyed, ostensibly to block any dental testing. Do those acts seem like rational actions?

There was no DNA evidence found at the scene from any of the Memphis Three. During these modern days, when CSI has so influenced America and juries, (the so-called “CSI effect” - put simply, juries demand more forensic than they used to and are less likely to convict barring such evidence), I doubt a regular jury would convict these three guys if told there was no DNA found at the scene.

Back in 1994, this jury was not given this information about the DNA, nor were they told of other information, just released this week, saying the genital mutilation was “actually the work of animals.” The new evidence also suggests there was no sexual abuse, but that instead that too was the result of animals in the area.

In the ropes binding the three boys was found a stray hair belonging to Terry Hobbs, a stepfather to one of the three. While police discounted this finding, saying his stepson could have accidentally picked it up at home, defense experts say that does not easily explain why the hair would be on the ropes used to bind another of the three boys. Additionally hair was found at the scene from another friend of Mr. Hobbs, someone who was with him for part of the evening.

The more I read, see, and learn about this, the more I am convinced the three did not get a fair trial and that the police need to reopen the case. The newly released evidence is clearly grounds for such. Let us hope they get it.