| THE DAMIEN ECHOLS CASE |
| Is Our Legal System Flawless? |
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| Hundreds of thousands of people fled England hundreds of years ago to escape religious pursecution. They wanted to be able to worship as they wished, without being treated as though their religion is wrong. A case in Arkansas suggests the possibility that religious pursecution still exists in the United States. Just because a person practices a religion, such as Wicca, that is different from the commons ones, such as Christianity and Catholicism, does that mean that his or her right to a fair trial no longer exists? Does the Bill of Rights apply only to those who practice the "normal" religions? If a crime seems to be of a "Satanic" nature and no suspect is found, does that mean that a young man who believes in the Wicca religion is automatically guilty? Does it also mean that any aquaintences of that person are also guilty, by association? According the the West Memphis community in Arkansas, the answers to these questions are 'yes'. Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin, and Jessie Misskelley were arrested and charged with the murder and mutilation of three 8 year-old boys; Steven E. Branch, James M. Moore, and Christopher M. Byers. |
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