An attorney for one of the West Memphis Three has attributed the wrongful conviction of the three teenagers to “satanic panic.”
The West Memphis Three were wrongly believed to be part of a satanic cult based on their choice of music, clothing, and books. However, this was far from the truth. When the mutilated bodies of three eight – year – old Cub Scouts were found in a ditch in West Memphis, Arkansas, local people were convinced it was a satanic ritual killing.
The manhunt that followed ruined the lives of three young boys. A local teen was placed on death row, and two others were given life sentences despite an apparent lack of evidence or motives. Damien Echols, 18, Jason Baldwin, 16, and Jessie Misskelley Jr, 17 became known as the West Memphis Three.
