Court Case Analysis: The West Memphis Three

The West Memphis Three One late evening on May 5, 1993, three young 8 year old boys, Michael Moore, Stevie Branch, and Christopher Byers, went out for a bike ride in Crittenden County of Arkansas. The little boys lived in the large city of West Memphis, where they promised to be home in time to eat dinner. According to Pam Hobbs, the mother of Stevie Branch, “around 4:45, [Stevie and the boys] had… still hadn't arrived.” (Berg). After a night full of hope that the boys would return, Mike Allen, Officer of the West Memphis Police Department, was called to search Robin Hood Hills for any clues to the whereabouts of the three boys. While searching a nearby creek, Allen had found that three boys “had been hog-tied [with their own shoelaces] and thrown in the water,” and “it appeared that [the three boys] had been sexually mutilated.” (Berg). Subsequently, the West Memphis Police Department concluded, based on evidence found, that this was a cult-related triple homicide. Body …show more content…
Indeed, succeeded by a private investigation of Terry Hobbs in 2007, led by investigator Rachael Geiser, a breakthrough in evidence was discovered. As stated in the film “West of Memphis”, “right in the middle of a knot [used in the bindings of one of the boy’s hands and feet] that had been tightened, there was a hair jammed in that knot.” (Egan). Shocking DNA tests revealed that this hair, in fact, belonged to Terry Hobbs. As a result, further investigation of Terry Hobbs became a priority for the West Memphis Police Department. Delving further into Terry’s personal life, the investigators confirms that “other than the fact that nothing's there, there's nothing that would raise any flags.” (Egan). Above all, Terry Hobbs, from that point in time, had become an indirect suspect for the case, due to the evidence developed against