Copyright 1994, The Commercial Appeal
The Commercial Appeal (Memphis)
March 7, 1994, Monday, Final Edition
SECTION: METRO, Pg. 1B,
LENGTH: 723 words
HEADLINE: Fibers testimony may seek to link Ark. defendants to slaying scene
BYLINE: By Bartholomew Sullivan, The Commercial Appeal
DATELINE: JONESBORO, Ark.
BODY:
The fifth day of the capital murder trial of Damien Wayne Echols
and Charles Jason Baldwin is expected to start today with scientific
testimony that fibers found at the crime scene are ''microscopically
similar'' to some threads in clothing found at the defendants' homes.
Unlike Jessie Lloyd Misskelley's trial, which ended a month ago,
four days of testimony last week produced only three prosecution
witnesses to make a solid case against Echols, 19, and Baldwin, 16.
The state's expected key witnesses supposed eyewitnesses to the
events of May 5 have yet to materialize. Meanwhile, Circuit Judge
David Burnett has commended the zeal of defense lawyers in raising
doubts about the prosecution's version of events while saying he will
not allow the jury to be misled by their intriguing red herrings.
The jury of eight women and four men has listened attentively to a
steady stream of evidence that three West Memphis 8-year-olds Steve
Branch, Michael Moore and Christopher Byers were severely beaten and
were found hogtied May 6 in a drainage ditch.
But without Misskelley's June 3 confession, which was used as the
probable cause to arrest Echols and Baldwin, the court case against
the two defendants appears to be pretty thin. Misskelley's
confession, which made Baldwin and Echols alleged accomplices, can't
be used to place them at the crime scene unless he testifies. As of
Friday, that appeared unlikely.
The state's most damaging witness so far against Baldwin was
Michael Carson, a 16-year-old admitted burglar from Jonesboro who
testified Wednesday that Baldwin gave him a detailed description of
the crime, including how he sucked the blood from one of the victims.
The conversation allegedly took place while Carson and Baldwin
were together at the Craighead County Detention Center in August.
The most solid evidence yet against Echols comes from the
confusing stories of Narlene Hollingsworth and her son, Anthony. Both
said they saw Echols and his girlfriend who looks, arguably, a
little like Baldwin did in May near the woods where the 8-year-olds
were later found dead. But while Hollingsworth said the sighting was
at 9:30 p.m., as she became ill while driving, her son said he saw
Echols at 10:30 p.m.
Echols's defense lawyer Scott Davidson tried to establish that the
red Ford Escort in which seven people were riding to pick up an eighth
was not an ideal venue for making observations.
The other 17 or 18 witnesses have established that a crime
occurred, but not who might have been responsible. And many of them
have provided an opportunity to cast doubt on the police version of
events.
West Memphis Police Insp. Gary Gitchell testified Thursday that
John Mark Byers, the father of murder victim Chris Byers, was a
suspect as recently as Jan. 26 after a New York-based film crew turned
over to police a knife he'd given them. That testimony was never
solicited in Miskelley's trial in Corning.
Casting doubt on Gitchell's version of how Misskelley came to
confess was the major defense assault in the Corning trial, and it
clearly failed when that jury found Misskelley guilty of first- and
second-degree murder. But Gitchell can't talk about Misskelley's
statement in the second trial.
West Memphis Detective Bryn Ridge did mention the statement in
court, but the jury has been instructed to ignore it. Both defense
teams asked for a mistrial after Ridge's statement, but the requests
were denied.
Associate medical examiner Frank J. Peretti testified last week
about the boys' injuries, offering explicit details aided by
gut-wrenching photographs.
But under cross-examination by Baldwin lawyer Paul N. Ford,
Peretti said the boys probably died between 1 a.m. and 5 a.m. May 6,
which, if true, could make Hollingsworth's testimony about seeing
Echols at 9:30 p.m. or 10:30 p.m. all but irrelevant.
Court was canceled Friday so Burnett and at least two of the
defense lawyers could attend an Arkansas Trial Lawyers Association
meeting in Fayetteville. Burnett spoke Saturday on the state's new
sentencing guidelines.
Testimony resumes this morning at 9:30.
