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The WM3 Freedom Fund is a legal trust fund that was created to pay for Damien, Jason and Jessie's basic lifestyle needs (food, shelter, healthcare, education and the like) in order to provide them a financial bridge as they re-enter society as free men, with the expectation each will become self-sufficient and live on their own earnings in the near future as they attain their career goals.

The WM3FF trust is not a non-profit organization. Supporter donations will be split among the three men except for minimal but necessary legal and administrative expenses.

Checks or money orders may be sent to this address:

WM3 Freedom Fund Trust
PO Box 22
Sun Valley CA 91353-0022

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Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory Oscar nominee interview #wm3

MSN speaks with Jason Baldwin of the West Memphis Three and documentary director Joe Berlinger. Watch the video here

‘Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory’: Its Road to the Academy Awards #wm3

The third documentary about the West Memphis 3 is a frontrunner for the Best Documentary Oscar. Lorenza Muñoz traces the films' 19-year journey, ending with the three men’s release.

by Lorenza Muñoz  | February 22, 2012 12:00 AM EST

It was a case too sensational to pass up. With a Southern Gothic feel, three Arkansas teenagers had been accused of torturing and killing three 8-year-old schoolboys in a Satanic ritual.

So when Sheila Nevins, HBO president of Documentary and Family Programming, saw the tiny wire story buried deep inside The New York Times in 1993, she sent documentary filmmakers Joe Berlinger and Bruce Sinofsky to investigate.

“Sheila saw that story as the Satanic worshipers who killed the Cub Scouts,” recalled Berlinger, whose 1992 documentary Brother’s Keeper had impressed Nevins. “At the time the country was coming off a wave of Satanic hysteria … It was a real life River’s Edge.”

Berlinger and Sinofsky were intrigued by the angle of kids killing kids. But in chronicling the case of the so-called West Memphis 3, Jason Baldwin, Damien Echols, and Jessie Misskelley, they came away convinced that the teens were innocent.

The subsequent documentaries, Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills and its two sequels, created a worldwide firestorm of coverage and an outcry in the public. It also drew attention from music-industry figures such as Pearl Jam’s Eddie Vedder, the Dixie Chicks’s Natalie Maines, and Patti Smith. It prompted director Peter Jackson and his wife, screenwriter Fran Walsh, to hire forensic-evidence experts who found new DNA evidence exonerating the West Memphis 3 and possibly pointing at another suspect. After spending nearly two decades in prison—including death row for Echols—they were released in a plea deal in August. 

Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory, which premiered on HBO last month, has been nominated for an Academy Award in the Best Documentary category. In the always-unpredictable category, it is considered a frontrunner.

Exclusive: West Memphis 3 Judge David Burnett Breaks Silence #wm3

 

In an exclusive interview with Region 8 News, State Senator David Burnett, the judge who presided over the West Memphis 3 trial breaks his longstanding silence in regards to the case.

In 1993 Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin and Jesse Misskelley were convicted of the murders of three West Memphis boys. Burnett presided over the original trial and the men's appeals that sent the so-called WM3 to prison. Now, not even a year after the "West Memphis Three" were set free, Burnett breaks his silence in an exclusive interview with Region 8 News.

"The way it's ended it's now a Hollywood comedy in my opinion and I don't like that," said Burnett.

Tonight only on Region 8 News at 10, Senator Burnett relates his thoughts on many aspects of the case that garnered national and international attention -  the case itself, the defendants, and the outcome.

Read the full story here.

Johnny Depp's Infinitum Nihil Options Forthcoming Memoir By West Memphis Three's Damien Echols - Deadline.com

EXCLUSIVE: Johnny Depp and his producing partner Christi Dembrowski and their Infinitum Nihil production shingle have yet another interesting project in development. They’ve optioned film rights to the soon-to-be-published and as-yet-untitled book by Damien Echols which reveals his experiences on death row after his wrongful conviction and subsequent wrongful 18-year imprisonment for the 1993 murder of three 8-year-old boys in West Memphis, Arkansas. The memoir will be published in September 2012 by Blue Rider Press, an imprint of Penguin Books. The injustice of the West Memphis Three story drew badly needed support from the entertainment community’s Peter Jackson, Eddie Vedder, Natalie Maines, Henry Rollins, and of course Depp. The actor and his producing partner have long been wanting and waiting to explore this story and will develop the narrative as a feature film with Echols and his wife Lorri Davis, who will be executive producers. Their collective take is to spotlight the controversial conviction and imprisonment of the then 18-year-old who’s now in his mid-30s and to present his life before conviction as well its twists and turns leading to release.

via www.deadline.com

PL3 Director Joe Berlinger Talks About "Unnecessary Friction" w 'West Of Memphis' Filmmakers

by Todd Gilchrist

For almost 20 years, documentarian Joe Berlinger (along with Bruce Sinofksy) has chronicled the complicated history of the West Memphis Three, a trio of Arkansas teenagers who were found guilty of a triple homicide despite questionable evidence. His first film about the trial, “Paradise Lost,” was released in 1996; Part 2, 'Revelations' followed in 2000, and Part 3, 'Purgatory,' just received a nomination for Best Documentary at this year’s Academy Awards. Berlinger never aspired to be the only filmmaker or news outlet pursuing the story, and in the last year or so, a couple of high-profile projects were initiated about the trial, including the documentary “West of Memphis,” produced by Peter Jackson and Fran Walsh and directed by Amy Berg, and an adaptation of the book “Devil’s Knot,” an account of the crimes written by Mara Levirett, with Atom Egoyan set to direct and Reese Witherspoon to star.

The announcement of these competing projects (particularly Berg's documentary) has stirred its own share of controversy, especially since, as Berlinger acknowledged, they experienced some “friction” as he and Berg were trying to complete their films. But in this exclusive interview with The Playlist at Sundance, where he's unveiling his latest effort the Paul Simon doc "Under African Skies," Berlinger revealed his feelings about those other films, specified what caused problems during production, and proffered what he hopes will come out of these competing efforts to document the case.

Read the full story at indiewire.

Colin Firth to Star in West Memphis 3 Movie 'Devil's Knot' #wm3

By Joshua L. Weinstein at TheWrap

Wed Feb 1, 2012 4:37pm EST

Colin Firth has signed on to star as Ron Lax, the private investigator whose detective work helped get three men who had been convicted of murder released from prison in Arkansas, the producers of the "Devil's Knot" told TheWrap Wednesday.

Lax "really is the unsung hero of this story," producer Elizabeth Fowler said.

The West Memphis Three are Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin and Jessie Misskelley, Jr., who were convicted of killing three 8-year-old boys in West Memphis, Ark., in 1993. Their guilt has been questioned ever since, with filmmakers taking up the case in a series of documentaries.

Also read: Out of Prison, West Memphis 3 Ex-Con Seeks Justice

"The Devil's Knot" will take a dramatized approach to the case, which shot back into headlines in August, when a judge ordered the West Memphis Three freed.

The judge freed the men based in large part on evidence that Lax found. The private investigator -- who worked on the case at no charge for more than a decade because he opposes the death penalty -- found DNA evidence that linked the stepfather of one of the murdered boys to material that was used to bind one of the victims.

The movie, however, "is not about how they got out of prison," producer Clark Peterson told TheWrap. "It's about how they got in."

Read the full story at TheWrap.com

Pam Hobbs on #WM3, Her Ex, and Meeting Damien Echols

From MyFoxMemphis.com

West Memphis, Ark. - Pam Hobbs tries to stay busy, which helps her avoid mentally agonizing over whether the man she once loved as a husband could have been capable of committing the unspeakable crime that's torn her world asunder for 19 years.

"I'm not letting that thought dwell with me. However, I'm scared. I'm fearful...sometimes guilt stricken. I might have overlooked something…I really can't explain my emotions with that. I'm just numb to the feeling right now and praying that it's not true."

Yet with the emergence of three potential new witnesses allegedly implicating Hobbs ex-husband Terry as the perpetrator in the brutal 1993 killings of three West Memphis boys, including his own step-son Stevie Branch, Pam Hobbs has been forced to again relive the tumultuous time. That includes looking back on her often stormy relationship with her former husband and what she now sees as his strange behavior before and after her son's heinous murder. A strained marriage she reflects often found Hobbs and her at odds over his treatment of their children.

Echols, Baldwin attend #WM3 documentary premiere in Nashville

 

NASHVILLE, TN - (WMC-TV) - A new documentary based on the West Memphis Three premiered in Nashville Thursday night.

Damien Echols, his wife Lorri Echols, and Peter Jackson are producers of "West of Memphis."  Echols and his wife were in Nashville Thursday for the city's premiere of the documentary.

"This is our project, our movie," said Echols.  "We're just happy we're seeing it."

Echols and his wife were joined by Jason Baldwin, Pam Hobbs, the mother of victim Steve Branch, and Mark Byers, the stepfather of victim Christopher Byers, at the sold out premiere.

The film had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival in Utah last week.

The documentary reveals new evidence discovered by defense attorneys that points the finger to Terry Hobbs, Pam Hobbs ex-husband.

"I'm content in my heart with my feeling that Damien, Jessie and Jason did not murder my son," said Pam Hobbs.

Read the full story and see the video at wmctv.com.

Joe Berlinger on his PARADISE LOST Oscar nomination

Documentary filmmaker Joe Berlinger (CRUDE, SOME KIND OF MONSTER) woke up in Park City this morning to the news his film PARADISE LOST: PURGATORY got an Oscar nomination. Berlinger stopped by the Sundance Channel HQ to talk about the honor and the twenty years he spent documenting the West Memphis Three. For those of you not familiar with the story, The West Memphis Three were teenagers convicted of murdering three young children back in 1994. Berlinger’s trilogy of films followed the young men’s trial, appeals and eventual release. Many people credit Berlinger’s films (co-directed with Bruce Sinofsky) with playing a role in securing the men’s release after 18 years in prison.

via www.sundancechannel.com

Paradise Lost 3 Nominated for Academy Award, Documentary Feature #wm3

Damien Echols discusses life "West of Memphis" #wm3

By Zorianna Kit

(Reuters) - Damien Echols was just a teenager when he and his two friends were tried and convicted of the murder of three young boys in West Memphis, Arkansas in 1993, a case that became known as the West Memphis Three.

Echols, along with fellow teens Jason Baldwin and Jessie Misskelley, are thought by some to be innocent of the crime and over the years, several documentaries have been made about them. Support from "Lord of the Rings" director Peter Jackson and other celebrities has helped raise awareness of their case.

Echols, Baldwin and Misskelley were released from prison last August in a legal maneuver known as an "Alford Plea," whereby the men plead guilty in their own best interest while asserting innocence.

Now their case is the subject of a documentary, "West of Memphis," produced by Jackson, his wife Fran Walsh, along with Echols and his wife, Lorri Davis. The movie looks at their case, interviews them in jail and tracks them after leaving prison.

Read  the full story here.

'West of Memphis' Filmmakers Accuse Stepfather of Murder -- Would Welcome a Lawsuit

By Steve Pond at TheWrap

At a news conference on Saturday, the filmmakers and legal team behind "West of Memphis" made it clear that they'd be delighted to be sued by Terry Hobbs, the man they strongly suggest  is responsible for the triple murder for which three young men spent nearly 20 years in prison.

"Let him have at it," said Dennis Riordan, an attorney who led the legal battle of Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin and Jessie Misskelly, the "West Memphis Three," to regain their freedom.

Hobbs has sued before and lost. But the filmmakers go out on a limb, almost inviting a new lawsuit in implicating him in the murder of his stepson and two eight-year-old playmates in 1993.

"Things worked out very well for us when he sued Natalie Maines," said Riordan with a smile.

Read the full story here.

EW.com: West of Memphis cast Q&A #wm3

Click image to see exclusive new video interview with Peter, Amy, Damien and Lorri.

 

Defense team raises new evidence in #WM3 case

 

From todaysthv.com

Sundance 2012: Tears and Anger as Peter Jackson's 'West of Memphis' Premieres

Damien Echols, Pam Hobbs and John Mark Byers attend the first screening of Amy Berg's documentary about the West Memphis 3 case.

The premiere of West of Memphis, Amy Berg’s new documentary about the controversial Arkansas case of the West Memphis 3, brought a full Sundance audience to the MARC Theatre Friday afternoon. Jackson and wife Fran Walsh, who produced the project, were on hand to introduce it, and several of the people involved in the case and the 1993 murders were there, as well. Victims’ parents John Mark Byers and Pam Hobbs were in the theater, as were Damien Echols and his wife Lorri Davis, who produced the film with Jackson and Walsh. Several of Echols’ lawyers were in attendance as well as a pair of juvenile legal defense workers who helped his case.

Full story at HollywoodReporter.com

'West Of Memphis' Offers New Evidence In #WM3 Saga

Peter Jackson-produced documentary, premiering Friday at Sundance, contains new info about the murders.

By Josh Wigler, with reporting by Josh Horowitz

PARK CITY, Utah — The Peter Jackson-produced documentary "West of Memphis" premieres at the Sundance Film Festival on Friday (January 20), chronicling the conviction, imprisonment and eventual release of West Memphis Three defendants Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin and Jessie Misskelley, who were convicted in 1994 of brutally murdering three young boys in Arkansas, despite an overwhelming amount of reasons to believe otherwise.

 

Though Echols, Baldwin and Misskelley were released from prison in August, they have still not been exonerated for the murders. "West of Memphis" aims to present new revelations about their innocence and another man's role in the crime, and as such, the documentary is something of an ever-evolving work — so much so that a new, crucial interview was just shot and added to the documentary in the last week.

"Some witnesses came forward a very short time ago," Jackson told MTV News about the new revelations. "[Director Amy Berg] was able to interview them about six days ago. We only just managed to get that particular interview with two young men into the movie, in time for the screenings today. It's some fairly serious eyewitness statements that I think are going to hopefully push the resolution of the case a little bit further."

Full story at mtv.com.

New sworn statements implicate Terry Hobbs in #WM3 case

by Beth Warren

Attorneys for former West Memphis Three death row inmate Damien Echols made Arkansas history last year when they got him freed. Now they're fighting to clear his name.

The defense team, led by attorney Stephen Braga, announced Friday they have found three new witnesses who point to Terry Hobbs as the real killer of three West Memphis boys. The witnesses, who Braga insists passed polygraph tests, claim Hobbs' nephew, Michael Hobbs Jr., told them "my Uncle Terry murdered those three little boys."

Terry Hobbs, stepfather of victim Stevie Branch, did not return calls Friday. He has denied having anything to do with the boys' murders, and police have never considered him a suspect.

Read the full story here.

Damien Echols, Mark Byers & Pam Hobbs at Sundance #wm3

(AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)

January 20, 2012 - Damien Echols, center, a producer of the film "West of Memphis," mingles with Pam Hobbs, left, and Mark Byers at the premiere of the documentary film at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah, Friday. Echols spent 18 years on death row in Arkansas after being convicted, along with Jason Baldwin and Jessie Misskelley Jr., of the murders of three eight-year-old boys including Byers' son Christopher and Hobbs' son Stevie. In August 2011 the three men were released from prison after entering a plea that allowed them to maintain their innocence, while acknowleding that prosecutors had enough evidence to convict them.

#Sundance Review: "West of Memphis" | Fourth Row Center: Film Writings by Jason Bailey

But at the end of the day, the picture is too reliant on footage we’ve already seen and things we already know. The second film to the marketplace always suffers in comparison (ask the makers of Infamous). If this were a story we weren’t acquainted with, West of Memphis would be a real knockout. If only.

via www.jason-bailey.com

West of Memphis: Sundance Film Review - The Hollywood Reporter

PARK CITY — Late to the party but absolutely essential, Amy Berg's West of Memphis delivers a gripping overall picture of the West Memphis 3 wrongful-conviction saga while offering many insights for viewers who have followed it through Joe Berlinger and Bruce Sinofsky's three Paradise Lost docs. Thorny, blood-boiling and finely made, it deserves a theatrical push.   Controversy precedes the film's debut here, with reports suggesting a turf war between Berg and Berlinger/Sinofsky. But West gives credit to its predecessor early on, citing Lost as the inspiration for most if not all of the follow-up attention, and tips its hat multiple times during the film. (And it only indirectly slams Paradise Lost 2 for casting doubt on a figure in the case, Mark Byers, who Berg clearly believes is innocent.)

via www.hollywoodreporter.com

“My Uncle Terry Murdered the Three Little Boys" in West Memphis #wm3

 It is the "Hobbs Family Secret" According to Nephew

PRESS RELEASE:

(Mountain Home, Arkansas – January 20, 2012) Terry Hobbs’ nephew, Michael Hobbs Jr., allegedly told his friends “my uncle Terry murdered those three little boys,” according to declarations under penalty of perjury recently given to Damien Echols’ defense team. The three new witnesses were polygraphed about what they stated Michael Hobbs, Jr. told them.

 

“One day Michael picked us up in his truck. He was very quiet and upset. Michael then said to us, ‘you are not going to believe what my dad told me today. My Uncle Terry murdered the three little boys.’ According to Michael, his dad called this ‘The Hobbs Family Secret’ and he asked us to keep it a secret and not tell anyone.”

 

Another witness stated, “One night last winter, Michael and I were playing pool in his basement when the third friend asked about the West Memphis Three case which had been in the news. Michael responded by saying, ‘My uncle killed three kids in West Memphis.’ Michael was dead serious when he said this.”

 

The three little boys referenced in the declarations were found brutally murdered in West Memphis, Arkansas in 1993. DNA consistent with Terry Hobbs, stepfather of victim Stevie Branch, was later discovered in the knot of a shoelace used to restrain victim Michael Moore. Three eyewitnesses have also provided sworn statements that they saw Terry Hobbs with the three children on the day of the murders, immediately before they disappeared.  Terry Hobbs has maintained that he never saw the three boys the day they were murdered.

'West of Memphis' Comes to Sundance Trailing Controversy, Advocacy -- and a Mysterious New Interview | Filmmakers, Film Industry, Film Festivals, Awards & Movie Reviews | Indiewire

One of the most compelling pre-Sundance Film Festival storylines this year is Amy Berg’s West Memphis Three documentary, “West of Memphis.” Premiering Friday at The MARC, the Documentary Premiere comes on the heels of the third installment of Joe Berlinger and Bruce Sinofsky’s landmark series on the West Memphis Three, “Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory.” That film played to acclaim at the Toronto International Film Festival, New York Film Festival and recently aired on HBO (it’s also on the Best Doc Oscar shortlist).

via www.indiewire.com

Sundance Docs: Peter Jackson & Damien Echols Talk 'West Of Memphis' | The Playlist

Sundance kicks off tomorrow and the journey for many films that will hit your arthouse and garner awards season heat will begin in Park City, Utah. While the lineup of feature films is always impressive, this year in particular features an equally strong array of documentaries with subject matter in a wide range of topics and interests. So here's a few that might catch fire over the next week or so.

via blogs.indiewire.com

Joe Berlinger Interview: NPR

Nearly 20 years ago, three young men were tried and convicted of murdering three boys in West Memphis, Arkansas. Those three young men who were convicted - Damien Echols, Jessie Misskelley, Jr. and Jason Baldwin - became known as the West Memphis Three. They also became a cause. While many in their community were convinced of their guilt, many outsiders believed that they were innocent and that their convictions were based on weak evidence and on faulty arguments.

One definite catalyst in this process was a series of documentaries made about the case all under the title of "Paradise Lost." The series of three documentaries told the stories of all of the people involved and kept alive the doubts about the convictions. The first one aired back in the mid-1990s. The most recent one just launched on HBO within the past few days. And in that documentary, at long last, the men go free. Joe Berlinger is the director and producer of the "Paradise Lost" series. He joins us now by phone from his home office in Westchester County, New York. Joe, welcome to TALK OF THE NATION. Listen to the interview here:

Joe Berlinger NPR Interview

Copyright © 2012 National Public Radio®. For personal, noncommercial use only. See Terms of Use. For other uses, prior permission required.

via www.npr.org

Joshua Kors: Q&A with Joe Berlinger, Director of West Memphis Three Documentary (VIDEO)

In 1993 acclaimed director Joe Berlinger arrived in West Memphis, Arkansas, a community still in shock after three eight-year-old boys disappeared, then were found dead in a nearby ravine. Facing a public that was both enraged and afraid, police scrambled to make an arrest. Soon three local teens—Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin and Jessie Misskelley—found themselves in court, accused of the murders.

via www.huffingtonpost.com