The boys had been stripped naked and they had been hog-tied. What Was Stevie Branch, Michael Moore and Christopher Byers' Cause of Death? The following day, authorities launched an extensive search for the boys where they were last seen playing - a wooded area off Interstate 40 known as “Robin Hood Hills.” Their bodies were discovered that afternoon in a drainage ditch. John Mark Byers, Christopher’s stepfather, reported the boys missing to the West Memphis Police Department at approximately 8 p.m., reported local newspaper the Memphis Flyer. Residents Jamie Clark Ballard and Carlos Seals were reportedly the last two people to see the boys alive, as reported in Oxygen's 'The Forgotten West Memphis Three.' In 2011, after almost two decades in prison, the West Memphis Three agreed to an Alford plea, which allowed them to proclaim their innocence while admitting the prosecution had enough evidence to convict them, and they were released from prison. Two were sentenced to life in prison, and the third received the death penalty.įollowing a series of documentaries that cast doubt on the investigation and law enforcement’s conclusion, high-profile supporters began to rally behind the imprisoned teens, later dubbed the “ West Memphis Three.” Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin, and Jessie Misskelley, Jr. were arrested and convicted for the crimes, despite a majority of the evidence being circumstantial. What’s known is that three 8-year-old boys - Steve 'Stevie' Branch, Christopher Byers and Michael Moore - were murdered in West Memphis, Arkansas, in 1993. To this day, it inspires fierce debate and accusations of guilt, while the facts and evidence remain contested.

It’s a case built on a shoddy confession and community bias, and includes allegations of Satanism, sexual abuse and mutilation.

Life After Death by Damien Echols