HAVE A THEORY?

“Chronology of Events”

-The Con-

http://www.midsouthjustice.com/Chronology2.htm

THEORY: According to Criminal Profiler, Brent Turvey, the victims were most likely conned by someone who they knew and trusted. For a forced abduction, three victims (2 on bicycles) pose an extremely high level of risk to the perpetrator(s) due to the fact that any one of the three victims may escape and alert the authorities. (Link to a summary of Brent Turvey’s Crime Analysis)



Based on Brent Turvey’s criminal profile, the real killer most likely knew the victims and could have easily earned their trust. He could have told the victims that they are boy scouts and together they were going to be heroes by solving a crime. It is possible that the real killer either drove the victims to the primary crime scene or asked them to meet him/her at the primary crime scene where his/her accomplice(s) was waiting, pretending to be a dead body. It is possible that the real killer(s) may have used a truck to transport the victims to the primary crime scene and later to the dumpsite.

FACT: The image below shows the actual truck belonging to John Mark Byers during the time of the murders.



FACT: Statements Byers made to the police on May 19th, 1993. Byers: “...One day Ryan and Brett Smith were down there on their bicycles playing and come running home just kind of all white in the face and excited and said dad, dad we saw a bum, or a junkie or it was somebody and they were laying in the ditch down there and WE THOUGHT MAYBE THEY WERE DEAD and we hollered and kind of chunked some rocks over that way and THEY moved. And it was a bum down there...”

Detective Ridge asks: “Did Chris ever tell you of seeing anything down there?”

Byers: “The only person that Christopher, that I can remember, told me about was over by Mayfair apartments, RIGHT WHERE THE RAILING WAS, WHERE THE PIPE CROSSES (This is the location where the bikes were found in the bayou) There was a guy one day had a car parked out there, and Chris come running home. Christopher telling me that he SAW A MAN DEAD under a car, and I NEEDED TO COME HELP HIM. And he was so sure that he saw a dead man under a car. I GOT HIM IN THE TRUCK AND HE TOOK ME OVER THERE TO SHOW HIM AND THERE WAS A MAN under his car, but he was changing his oil. You, so, that was the only person that he had ever said.”

(Link to the actual police transcript)



FACT: In their interview on May 19th, 1993 with John Mark Byers, Detectives James Sudbury and Bryn Ridge NEVER follow up on the statements by Byers that Ryan AND Christopher had both seemingly seen dead bodies at different times in the area where the victims were found.



FACT: Inspector Gitchell formally requested a psychological profile of the killer from the FBI. However, no such profile was ever disclosed to the defense. Nine pages of the documents that the FBI sent Inspector Gitchell were missing.

(Link to the court discussion regarding the FBI psychological profile of the killer)



FACT: “Byers had told police that he had gone to a clinic in Memphis the day of the abduction and had not been able to find Christopher when he’d returned home at around 3:10 pm. Melissa Byers’s father recalled a markedly different version of the afternoon’s events. He said that Melissa had arranged with him to come to the house and stay with Christopher after school, in case Mark wasn’t back from the clinic. The child’s grandfather said that he had driven to West Memphis as planned, but when he got there – shortly before Christopher was to get out of school – Mark was already home. Melissa’s father said, “I was on my way up to the schoolhouse, which was right near their house, you know, when Mark saw me and told me he was going to pick up Chris by himself. He told me not to get him. He said he’d take care of it. So I just went on my way. I’ve thought about it a hundred times. I wish I’d went ahead and got Chris. They called me that night and told me he was missing.” Source: Atria Books: Mara Leveritt, Devil’s Knot, p 312, 2002.



NOTE: It is strange that John Mark Byers mentions that BOTH of the children who lived with him told him about a dead body that was actually not dead but alive. Ryan was a teenager while Christopher was 8 years old.

-The Abduction-

http://www.midsouthjustice.com/Chronology3.htm



THEORY: The victims trustingly went with the killer(s) to the primary crime scene where an accomplice was waiting and pretending to be a dead body. Once the victims were inside the abandoned shed, the perpetrator(s) easily subdued them by force. The killer then left the primary crime scene to establish an alibi, leaving the victims with the accomplice.

THEORY: The real killer(s) may have been selling drugs from the primary crime scene. Members of the police may have protected the drug dealer before the murders and this location since they were using the drug dealer to sell the drugs that were “missing” from the evidence lockers of the narcotics division of the police department. When the murders happened, the police may not have wanted their entire operation to blow up in their faces. Going after the real killer(s) may have presented the risk of their “operation” being disclosed to the public by the killer(s). It may have been easier for them to believe that Satan murdered the victims instead of facing the truth when looking in the mirror.





FACT: Statements to the police made by John Mark Byers on May 19th, 1993. Byers states: “...That was the abandoned house I checked, where...” Detective Ridge states: “Do you know Aaron’s last name?” Byers states: “No sir, but, I can tell you the house. Where I live, you got Wilson right here... then you got a corner house that’s got a brick fence around it, then you got another house right beside it. Well they lived in that second house. And I remembered it had a storage building out back. SO I RAN DOWN THERE and looked IN THAT STORAGE BUILDING thinking maybe THEY WERE hiding BACK THERE. BUT I COULD TELL HADN’T NOBODY WALKED THROUGH THERE AND THERE WASN’T NO PAPER. The storage room wasn’t much bigger than this room. AND IT WAS ALL CLEANED OUT...”

(Link to the actual police transcript)

Below is the Google Map location that Byers identifies above.


FACT: During their interview on May 19th, 1993 with John Mark Byers, Detectives James Sudbury and Bryn Ridge NEVER follow up on the fact that John Mark Byers states that “there was no paper,” which is a disconnected and random statement in the context of a “search.”



NOTE: It is interesting that John Mark Byers mentions the fact that “there was no paper” and “it was all cleaned out” when speaking about an abandoned shed he searched behind his house. In these statements, John Mark Byers was “reliving” the night as he talked about it. It is also a fact that Byers claimed in his statements to the police that he is out all night looking for the boys.



SUGGESTIONS: Soil samples from the above location need to be taken and analyzed for possible evidence. Also, people involved in drugs and especially friends of Ryan Clark during the murders need to be questioned to see if they have ever purchased or know of anyone purchasing drugs from this location.

-The Alibi-

-The Murder-

http://www.midsouthjustice.com/Chronology5.htm

THEORY: After setting up his/her alibi, the real killer(s) changed his/her clothes and returned to the primary crime scene by walking through backyards and into the abandoned shed at approximately 8:15-8:45 pm and under the cover of darkness. It is a fact that the real killer(s) attacked, mutilated and brutally beat the victims. Christopher died from his injuries but the other victims were left unconscious. The abandoned shed is artistically depicted in the illustration below.



THEORY: After the brutal beating and murder of Christopher Murray (also known as Christopher Byers), there was a tremendous amount of blood that needed to be “cleaned out.” The actual killer(s) may have found himself/herself with an urgent need to return to the primary crime scene to clean the blood while he/she was dumping the victims. The thought that he/she needed to clean the primary crime scene may have been urgent and engraved in his/her mind. It is possible that after the “dump,” the real killer(s) returned to the primary crime scene to make sure that “it was all cleaned out.” Evidence may still be there to this day.

The body of Christopher Murray (also known as Christopher Byers), the breathing bodies of Steven Branch and Michael Moore, and the bicycles of Steven and Michael were placed in the truck belonging to the killer(s) where they were transported to the parking area behind the Blue Beacon Truck Wash. Apart from the southern entrance to the woods, The Blue Beacon Truck Wash is the closest location where a vehicle can park in order to carry the victims and the bicycles to the locations where they were found. It is also more likely that the “northern” entrance was used since the area is a non-residential area. It is a fact that Ryan Clark and his friends entered the Robin Hood Woods area at approximately 9:00 pm from the residential southern entrance of the woods.



The real killer(s) wore his/her clothes for several days after committing the murder so that he/she would be aware of their location at all times since there would have been evidence all over the garments. Also, wearing the same clothes for several days would give the killer(s) the believable excuse of destroying his/her garments if they are ever requested in the future by investigators. He/she may have anticipated this request and planned to tell investigators… “They were filthy and I burned them” if the police ever asked for them.





FACT: After Officer Regina Meek leaves to search for the boys, John Mark Byers is not seen again by anyone other than Melissa Byers until 9:42 pm when Officer John Moore notices that John Mark Byers’s truck is parked behind The Blue Beacon Truck Wash (a short distance from where the bodies were found). At 9:43 pm, Officer John Moore finds John Mark Byers walking on the South Service Road by himself, wearing boots and overalls, and without a flashlight LONG AFTER THE SUN HAD SET. The image below is the actual truck of John Mark Byers that was parked behind the Blue Beacon Truck Wash on the night of the murders.

(Link to the actual police transcript)

(Link to the police log that corroborates Officer John Moore’s search with John Mark Byers.)



The above image of John Mark Byers’s truck is taken from “Paradise Lost, Part 2.” This is also the truck that was parked behind the Blue Beacon Truck Wash at 9:42 pm on the night of the murders.

FACT: Detectives James Sudbury and Bryn Ridge NEVER follow up on this point during their interview with John Mark Byers on May 19th, 1993 even though Officer John Moore located John Mark Byers at 9:42 pm on May 5th 1993, alone, without a flashlight, and his truck parked at the closest location to the bodies where a car can be parked when considering the walking distance to where the victims were dumped. (Behind the Blue Beacon Truck Wash)



FACT: John Mark Byers tells the police on May 19th, 1993: “My son, Ryan and I got in the car and we drove around there to Blue Beacon, and went into Blue Beacon Truck Wash, and I said, look, we got 3 boys missing. I didn’t want ya’ll, you know, I want to go back here behind ya’ll’s property and holler and yell in these woods. But I wanted you to know why my car’s back there.”

(Link to the actual police transcript)



FACT: The above statement DIRECTLY CONTRADICTS the statements made by Ryan Clark and his friends who never claimed to have seen or heard John Mark Byers at anytime from 8:20-9:15pm during their search for the victims.

(Police record summarizing the statements by Ryan Clark)

(Police record summarizing statements by Britt Smith)

(Police record summarizing the statements by Richie Masters)

(Police record summarizing statements by Robbie Young)



FACT: Detectives James Sudbury and Bryn Ridge NEVER FOLLOW UP on this OBVIOUS INCONSISTENCY IN HIS ALIBI made by John Mark Byers during their interview on May 19th, 1993.



FACT: In regards to the night the children were missing, John Mark Byers states the following, “We were just kind of debating on if THEY HAD FELL IN THE BAYOU AND DROWNED, where would the bikes be and we couldn’t see how both bicycles could have run off in the bayou. And I KNEW MY SON (Christopher) WAS A REAL STRONG SWIMMER, and he, the only way he could have drowned would have been maybe trying to help one of the other kids that fell in.” In this statement, John Mark Byers correctly states the means by which Michael Moore and Stevie Branch die the night before they are found. He also implies that Christopher could not have drowned. Christopher was the only victim who did not have water in his lungs, signifying that he had died from his injuries.

(Link to the actual police transcript)



FACT: The autopsy report for Christopher Murray (also known as Christopher Byers) states the cause as of death as “Multiple Injuries.” The autopsy reports for Michael Moore and Steve Branch state the causes of death as “Multiple Injuries with drowning” for both victims.

(Link to the autopsy reports)



FACT: Detectives James Sudbury and Bryn Ridge NEVER follow up on the above statement made by John Mark Byers who discloses that the victims had drowned before anyone knew they were dead.



FACT: The following morning and before the kids are found, John Mark Byers suggested to the police that they should put a boat in the bayou in case the kids drowned. John Mark Byers states, “I made the comment; Denver Reed, when ya’ll going to put a boat in the bayou? You know, if they’ve drowned, you know, let’s get a boat in the bayou. And he told me, you know, that they would do that. And it seemed like around 9:30 (am), 10 o’clock, I was told.” In this statement John Mark Byers again correctly tells Officer Reed the means by which Michael Moore and Stevie Branch die the morning before they are found AND THE LOCATION OF THEIR BODIES.

(Link to the actual police transcript)



FACT: Detectives James Sudbury and Bryn Ridge NEVER follow up on the above statement made by John Mark Byers where he not only tells a police officer that the kids drowned before they are found, but he also leads the police officer to the location of the bodies.



FACT: Right after Inspector Gitchell tells John Mark Byers that they found the boys and before any information about the crime was disclosed to the public, John Mark Byers discloses intimate and correct details about the crime to the media. He stated to a reporter that one of the boys was hit above his eye and another’s jaw was injured. He also said that another kid was “worse than that.” (Source: Atria Books: Mara Leveritt, Devil’s Knot, p.13, 2002.)



FACT: Officer Regina Meek was searching for the victims on the night they disappeared and she entered the area where the victims were found.

Prosecutor John Fogleman asked her in court, “was there any particular thing about the, uh, the conditions that you noted?”
Meek: “Yes, sir. When I went down the hill to the pipe, of course the weeds were extremely high, the mosquitoes were tremendous. I was breathing in mosquitoes it was so bad.”



FACT: There were no mosquito bites on the bodies of the victims, which implies that the area where the victims were found is not the location where they were attacked. (Refer to the autopsy report links above.)



FACT: The victims lost a tremendous amount of blood during the attacks. However, not a single drop of the victim’s blood was found anywhere around the dumpsite.



FACT: John Mark Byers discloses to the police that he wore the same boots and overalls for three days after the murders. The police never requested or tested the garments he wore on the night of the murders.

-The Dump-

http://www.midsouthjustice.com/Chronology6.htm

THEORY: The real killer(s) carried the bicycles of the victims to the pipe area of the Robin Hood Woods. The accomplice helped him. The killer(s) dumped the bicycles into the bayou where the police found them the following day. They returned to their vehicle to retrieve the bodies. As they were throwing the bodies into the water, the real killer(s) heard the voice of Ryan Clark yelling, “Christopher... is that you? If that’s you Christopher, this is not a funny game.” This happened at approximately 9:10 pm. Startled, the real killer(s) then threw a body or a stone into the bayou in an attempt to scare Ryan and Brett away. The perpetrators also heard Richie Masters and Robbie Young on the other side of the pipe. The splashes that Ryan, Brett, Richie, and Robbie heard were the victims or an object being thrown into the water to scare them off. The teenagers continued calling into the woods but instead of receiving an answer, they heard more splashes. On the other side of this exchange, the accomplice panicked since he felt surrounded by the teenagers. After he heard the teenagers close by, he lost his nerve, dropped everything and made a run for it. In an instinctual move, the real killer shot the accomplice who was fleeing. (Ryan and his friends heard “gunshots” after hearing the splashes) The accomplice was wounded by the gunshots and got away. He ran into the Bojangles restaurant following the 10 Mile Bayou Diversion Ditch, which made a direct route from the dumpsite to the Bojangles restaurant. Either the victims were already placed in the water or the real killer(s) later dumped the bodies into the water where they were found. Michael and Steven drowned to death while Christopher died of his injuries. The “dumpsite” was approximately 3,500 feet from the Bojangles restaurant and this is where the bodies were found the following day.



When the real killer(s) was confronted about gunshots being heard on the night of the murders, the real killer successfully attempted to divert the attention from the gunshots by claiming the sounds were something else.




------------------------------------


Image of State Exhibit 14 showing the area where the victims where found.

FACT: The following are detective notes of the interview Detectives Hester and Kesterson conducted with Ryan Clark regarding the night of May 5th 1993. “States that Ryan went into the woods at about 9 pm. Richie Masters and Robbie were with them. Went in front of Goodwin dead end. Went to the end to the bayou by the swing. Heard what sounded like 5 real loud splashes in the water. States that he heard the grass and brush crackling. After the first two splashes Ryan yelled, ‘hello, is anyone over there?’ (According to Brett Smith he yelled, ‘Chris, if that’s you, it’s not a funny game’) After the 3rd splash, Brett and Ryan got scared and ran back to the dead end. He and Brett ran down until he got to the dead end of McCauley. They ran to the dead end towards the pipe – found Richie and Robbie and told them what they had heard. When they got to the pipe they heard a gunshots.” (According to Brett Smith they “heard gunshots and Richie and Robbie thought that it meant that they weren’t wanted in there.”)

(Link to the summary of Ryan Clark’s statements to the police)

(Link to the summary of Brett Smith’s statements to the police)



FACT: Recorded statements made by John Mark Byers on May 19th, 1993 regarding the gunshots: “...that was just a car right down there on Wilson that backfired. But, while we were in the woods, I never heard a gunshot.” (1. John Mark Byers acknowledges the “gunshot” sound. 2. How does John Mark Byers know it was a car backfiring? 3. John Mark Byers states, “when we were in the woods” placing himself with or near Ryan Clark in the Robin Hood Woods. 5. The only time Ryan Clark was in the Robin Hood Woods on the night of the murders was with his friends at approximately 9:10 pm. 4. Ryan Clark never claimed to have been with, seen or heard John Mark Byers in the Robin Hood Woods on the night of the murders. 5. Ryan and his friends heard splashes and gunshots and felt that they were not wanted there. 6. Officer Moore finds John Mark Byers parked behind the Blue Beacon Truck Wash at 9:42 pm.)

(Link to the actual police transcript)



THEORY: The above facts clearly indicate that John Mark Byers may have been one individual in the Robin Hood Woods at 9:10 pm causing the “splashes” and the “gunshots” considering the fact that he was found at 9:42 pm, alone and without a flashlight, parked behind the Blue Beacon Truck Wash. (the northern entrance of the Robin Hood Woods)



FACT: Detectives James Sudbury and Bryn Ridge NEVER press John Mark Byers on any of the issues including the “gunshots” that were heard by Ryan, Brett, Richie, and Robbie at approximately 9:10 pm on May 5th, 1993 even though John Mark Byers claims that he went out there with them looking for the boys. (HE NEVER WENT WITH THEM)



FACT: In Paradise Lost, Part 1, ~30:52… John Mark Byers states, “You know one thing I like about this right here black powder gun… is they can’t pull any type of ballistics on it if by some chance you was to shoot something with it. Every bullet rifles through the chamber just a little bit different… so they just can’t pull no ballistics off this one.” The image below is taken from Paradise Lost, Part 1 where John Mark Byers is loading his black powder gun and coating the bullets with some kind of lubricant or dye.


The above image of John Mark Byers holding his black powder gun comes from Paradise Lost, Part 1.

FACT: John Mark Byers contradicts the statements of Ryan, Richie, Robbie, and Brett by stating that the gunshots were actually the sound of a car backfiring on Wilson. John Mark Byers acknowledges the sound AND John Mark Byers tells police that the sound was actually something else. He also attempts to diminish Ryan’s statements about the gunshots by claiming they were rocks hitting rocks or something “loud.” Detectives Sudbury and Ridge never question Byers about these concerning inconsistencies. How does John Mark Byers know that rocks were hitting rocks?

(Link to the actual police transcript)


The above image is State Exhibit 14 showing the area where the victims were dumped.


The above image of John Mark Byers firing his black powder gun comes from Paradise Lost, Part 1.

-The Accomplice- (BOJANGLES MENTION)

http://www.midsouthjustice.com/Chronology7.htm

THEORY: The Bojangles man was the accomplice of the real killer(s). “Mr. Bojangles” was shot by the real killer(s) as he attempted to flee after hearing the voices of teenagers nearby. ‘Mr. Bojangles’ walked into the restaurant wounded by a gunshot. The 10-mile diversion ditch made a direct path from the location where the victims were found to the Bojangles restaurant. After Marty King approached the man in the Bojangles restaurant, “Mr. Bojangles” left and was never heard from again. Three boys were murdered less than 3,500 feet away AND the 10 Mile Bayou Diversion Ditch led directly from the ‘dumpsite’ to the Bojangles Restaurant. Certain detectives DELIBERATELY covered up this crime. According to Marty King he called the police around 9:40 pm to report the bleeding man in the commode. This happened approximately 30 minutes after the “gunshots” were heard in the Robin Hood Woods by Ryan Clark and his friends. The killer(s) were part of the detective’s drug selling operation. Furthermore, the real killer(s) had too much information regarding their operation for these detectives to go after him/her. Drugs, money, and corruption is the main reason why this case was not solved during the time of the murders.



FACT: Marty King was the manager of the Bojangles restaurant on May 5th, 1993. The following is Marty King’s testimony from the Echols/Baldwin trial “Well, it was about 9:30 that night, a lady and her daughter came in to order supper, I guess it was for them. We took her order and the lady said that she needed to take her daughter to the restroom so I told her it was right around the corner. (At the Misskelley trial, Marty King testifies that the lady and her daughter ordered some food “THIRTY MINUTES BEFORE CLOSING” which reinforces the time of 9:30 pm.) The lady and her daughter immediately came back around, and I asked her if there was a problem. She said, ‘Yes sir, there was a gentleman in the women’s restroom.’ I said, ‘Ok, I’ll go check it out.’ And at that time, I found a black gentleman sitting on the commode with his head in his lap. He was probably about 5’8” or 5’9” somewhere in that area. About 165 lbs, real thin man. He had his head in his lap and there was blood dripping off of his forearm. And there was blood on the wall as far as where he had leaned up against the wall, maybe staggered in, but he had mud on his feet, and he seemed disarrayed when I talked to him. He raised up and kind of slurred that he was alright. I gave him a few more minutes to come out, and he never did so I went back to check on him again and I called the police then... (Approximately 9:40 pm) The gentleman had wasted a whole roll of toilet tissue by soaking up blood... it was saturated all the way down to the cardboard roll. I just threw it in the garbage at that time. There was a pair of sunglasses that apparently tried to flush down the commode. I fished ‘em out and throwed those in the garbage also. There was quite a bit of mud on the floor. We dug a water hose around and washed it out. Normally we would have swept and mopped, but you know, there was a large amount of mud on his feet, and that was on the floor so we just washed it down the drain. There was some blood above the commode and on the wall. Maybe it looked like where he had leaned up against the wall cause it looked to be the impression of a forearm. There was some blood on the floor, commode, doorknob and in the hallway where he had left also. An off duty officer by the name of Billy Covington came in the next morning, a friend of mine, and I was telling him of the event that happened the night before and it kind of struck him in a strange way. He said, “Don’t clean that blood off the door handles or the wall or anything, and I will get back with you in a little while. Later that afternoon DETECTIVES BRYN RIDGE AND MIKE ALLEN CAME OUT AND TOOK A REPORT... and then THEY TOOK BLOOD SCRAPINGS OFF THE WALL IN THE WOMEN’S RESTROOM, OFF THE MEN’S DOOR IN THE HALLWAY AND OFF THE WALL IN THE HALLWAY. I told them about the sunglasses and we fished them out and they took ‘em with them. I told them about the roll of toilet paper and they said ‘we don’t need that, JUST DISCARD IT.’

(Link to the Criminal Investigation Field Report by the West Memphis Police corroborating Marty King’s story before he testifies.)



FACT: During the Echols trial, Detective Bryn Ridge is asked the following question by Val Price, “Detective Ridge, what is the date that you sent the blood scrapings off to the crime lab to be analyzed?” Ridge answers, “They were never sent.” Price asks “They were never sent?” Ridge responds, “That’s correct.” Price asks, “Where are the blood samples at this time?” Ridge answers, “I don’t know sir, they’re lost.” Price asks, “They’re lost?” Ridge answers, “Yes sir, that’s my mistake. I lost a piece of evidence.” Detectives Bryn Ridge LOST THE BLOOD SCRAPINGS AND SUNGLASSES HE COLLECTED WITH DETECTIVE MIKE ALLEN AT THE BOJANGLES RESTAURANT.

(Download Quicktime Video Clip of the above statements from Paradise Lost, Part 1) (Right Click and “Save As”)



FACT: John Mark Byers claims to have seen ‘a little skinny black guy’ on the night of the murders coming out of the Robin Hood Woods. These are the people that JMB claims to have said ‘if they come up here, we’ll hold on to ‘em for you.’ These statements come from John Mark Byers’ interview with the police on May 19th, 1993.

(Link to the actual police transcript)



FACT: Detectives James Sudbury and Bryn Ridge NEVER press John Mark Byers regarding the ‘little skinny black guy’ he mentions being in the area where the bodies were found even though BRYN RIDGE HIMSELF PERSONALLY KNEW ABOUT THE BOJANGLES MAN. This ‘little skinny black guy’ matches the description of the Bojangles man. Detective Bryn Ridge himself took the blood scrapings from the Bojangles restaurant and subsequently “lost” the evidence.



FACT: MARTY KING’S TESTIMONY NOR THE POLICE FIELD REPORT filed by Bryn Ridge and Mike Allen MATCH THE POLICE LOG, which states that Marty King’s call came in at 8:40 pm. According to Marty King’s testimony from BOTH trials, his call would have come in at approximately 9:40 pm. (The next page addresses the inaccurate police log)



FACT: Crime lab analyst Lisa Sakevicious reported finding a fragment of “negroid hair” on the sheet that was wrapped around Christopher Murray’s body. (also known as Christopher Byers)Source: Atria Books: Mara Leveritt, Devil’s Knot, p.28, 2002..



FACTS: Detective Bryn Ridge “lost” the blood scrapings and the sunglasses he took from the Bojangles Restaurant. Christopher Murray (also known as Christopher Byers) had the community looking in their direction. Neighbors were wondering why the police were friends with an unemployed jeweler whose son was out of control. Detective James Sudbury, who questioned Byers during his first interview was also in the “drug task force.” Neighbors also wondered why certain members from the “drug task force” and the West Memphis Police Department would visit Byers at his home for barbecues during the weekends. Detective James Sudbury, along with two other officers, would later be fired in 2001 for falsifying evidence and missing drugs from evidence lockers. (More on this in the WMPD page)

-The Police Log-

http://www.midsouthjustice.com/Chronology8.htm

THEORY: The police log is either incorrect or a falsification. If the police log is in error, it could have been written after the night of the murders since the daily routine of such a document can become tedious and cumbersome which would account for the mistake in time. However, given the history of corruption in the West Memphis Police department, it is likely that the police log is a falsification. It could be a rewritten log with the intention of confusing the events of time.



It is not that difficult to conclude that there may be a connection between the “gunshots” that Ryan, Brett, Robbie, and Richie heard in the Robin Hood Woods at 9:10 pm and the bleeding man in the Bojangles Restaurant half a mile away at 9:30 pm. Certain detectives may have deliberately covered up this crime in order to protect their ‘drug selling operation’ that included the real killer(s). This police log may have been another way to cause confusion for an outside party attempting to piece together the crime.



FACT: Officer Regina Meek, who took the call to the Bojangles restaurant, testifies that when she received the call, she drove directly to that location. She testifies at the Echols trial that it took her “less than 5 minutes” to make the route. According to Officer Regina Meek: “I was on Barton, I went Barton across 7th Street to Glen Bailey - Glen Bailey to Missouri Street and made a right.” The map below shows the route Officer Regina Meek took according to her testimony in court. However, this testimony contradicts the police log, which shows Officer Regina Meek calling in a license plate number at 8:44 pm on South Avalon Street almost 4 miles away.

(Link to the entire testimony of Regina Meek at the Echols trial)



FACT: The police log entry at the top of the page shows that at 8:44 pm, Officer 256 (Regina Meek) was taking a license plate number of a locked Chevy Van, IL # 397501 on South Avalon. The map below shows the exact location with a star of Officer Meek when she made the call on South Avalaon. The POLICE LOG CONTRADICTS OFFICER MEEK’S STATEMENTS IN COURT REGARDING THE ROUTE SHE TOOK WHEN SHE WAS CALLED TO THE BOJANGLES RESTAURANT. According to the police log, Officer Regina Meek would have received the call to the Bojangles restaurant, then driven to South Avalon, almost 4 miles away, then noticed the van, then read the license plate, then called in the license plate from a Chevy Van, IN JUST 2 MINUTES. THEN she went to the Bojangles restaurant and arrived 6 minutes later. However, Officer Regina Meek clearly states that she remembered taking a direct route to the restaurant (As shown in the map above). Officer Regina Meek also testifies that she called in the license plate on Avalon Street. In her testimony, she seems very confused about the times of the police log. She would have had to speed and furthermore, it would have been impossible for her to arrive at the location at 8:50 pm as the police log entry shows since she was way down on Avalon Street taking the license plate number of a Chevy Van with Illinois plates almost 4 miles away. However, Regina Meek clearly testifies that these two incidents are separate from each other. If the police log is considered to be accurate, it is very strange that Regina Meek would drive four miles south AFTER she receives the call to the Bojangles Restaurant and it is even stranger that Regina Meek contradicts these events in her testimony.



FACT: Officer Regina Meek testifies on several occasions that she is confused about the times these events took place. At the Echols trial, defense attorney, Davidson, hands Officer Regina Meek the police log and asks the following question. While looking at the police log, Regina Meek testifies in court that the times are incorrect.



Davidson: How long did you go out and look on your own?
Meek: Mmm--several minutes, I received a call somewhere in there--I'm not sure of the exact time on that, but I was called away for a few minutes and then I went back.
Davidson: And do you recall when you were called away? (In reference to the Bojangles call)
Meek: Not when the times are. (In reference to the Police Log she is holding in her hand)

(Link to the entire testimony of Regina Meek at the Echols trial)



FACT: Testimony from the Echols trial of Officer Meek regarding the call she received to go to the Bojangles Restaurant.

Meek: This is 7th Street here. Here's Barton. I was uh--between 14th and McAuly on Barton when I received the call and I was sent over to Missouri Street, which will be right here.
Davidson: So where would--point out where Robin Hood Woods would be--forrest please.
Meek: Ok. Just a second. Ten Mile Bayou, 14th Street, Goodwin--this area.
Davidson: Ok, and from that area uh--you said you were somewhere right around here when you received the call?
Meek: I was on Barton.
Davidson: And what route did you take to go to Missouri Street?
Meek: I went Barton across 7th Street to Glen Bailey--Glen Bailey to Missouri Street and made a right.
Davidson: Could you track that for us and show us how you went?
Meek: Ok. Missouri, here's 7th--where's Glen Bailey? It's broken up. Oh, this map. You can draw Glen Bailey on there, so--(laughs)--it's on, it's a cross street. It used to be Barton Extended. They changed the name to Glen Bailey. It's just straight across it goes between Industrial Park.
(mumbling)
Davidson: Now, how long do you think it would have taken you to get where you were over to this other call?
Meek: I know less than 5 minutes.
Davidson: Less than 5 minutes.
Meek: Even with the traffic lights.
Davidson: Now uh--over on Missouri Street, was there a particular establishment that you were called to?
Meek: Yes sir.
Davidson: And what was that establishment?
Meek: Bojangles.
Davidson: Bojangles?
Meek: Yes sir.

(Link to the entire testimony of Regina Meek at the Echols trial)



POSSIBLE AVENUES TO PURSUE IN ORDER TO PROVE/DISPROVE THE POLICE LOG ERROR: The Operators in the Police Log were Johnson/Holland. One way to ascertain that the police log may be in error would be to compare the handwriting of these two operators during the time of the murders with the Police Log of May 5th 1993. Also, it would be good to ask them if the police log was filled out on May 5th, 1993 or at a later date. The link below shows that the handwriting of Chief Inspector Gary Gitchell is very similar to the handwriting on the Police Log. Furthermore it would be a good idea to question Officer Regina Meek regarding her specific recollection of the night of May 5th, 1993 in regards to the call of the license plate and the routes she took on that night. Marty King also needs to be asked the reason why he testified at the Echols trial that it was 9:30 pm when he was made aware of the Bojangles man. There may be something that Marty King remembers specifically that allows him to recall that exact time.

(Link to a handwriting comparison.)

“The John Mark Byers ‘Kershaw’ Knife”

The above image is taken from the “case files” in the West Memphis Police Department.

http://www.midsouthjustice.com/murderweapon.htm


FACT: On December 19th, 1993, John Mark Byers gave the above knife to Doug Cooper as a gift. Doug Cooper was the cameraman for the documentary filmmakers, Bruce Sinofsky and Joe Berlinger. Doug Cooper had been filming Byers all day and he fell asleep on his couch. Byers apparently felt that he had “bonded” with Cooper. Byers woke him up and asked him if he “appreciates knives.” Byers then went to get the knife and told Doug Cooper, “I want to give you something.” Byers told him “I want to keep it (the knife) in your car.” Doug Cooper told Byers that he didn’t want the gift and he couldn’t understand why Byers was insisting that he take the knife. Byers insisted that he take the knife and told him that it was “sharp” and he proceeded to cut a piece of paper with it. Byers then told Doug Cooper, “IT’S BETWEEN US. WE HAVE SOMETHING BETWEEN US AND I WANT YOU TO THINK OF ME IF YOU SHOULD EVER USE IT.” Doug Cooper had suspicions about the knife and took it with him to New York. He turned it over to Bruce Sinofsky and Joe Berlinger, the “Paradise Lost” filmmakers.

(Link to the statements made by Doug Cooper regarding the John Mark Byers Knife)



FACT: The filmmakers noticed that the “John Mark Byers Knife” had traces of blood at the base of the blade. They brought the knife to the attention of their HBO producers who instructed them to film the knife and send it to the Chief of Police in West Memphis, Gary Gitchell. The filmmakers did not know whether the blood was animal or human. They then video taped the knife in order to prove its existence and sent it to Gary Gitchell via Federal Express. (Refer to the previous link for the statement regarding the “video taping” of the knife)

(Link to the signed statement made by Bruce Sinofsky)



FACT: On January 8th, Chief Inspector, Gary Gitchell received the “John Mark Byers Knife” via Federal Express from the filmmakers. Detective Gary Gitchell engraved his initials “GWG,” date “01/08/94,” and “E-178” on the handle and sent the knife to “Genetic Design” for DNA testing with only 10 days left before the Misskelley trial was scheduled to begin. Detective Gitchell also noticed another substance “glued” to blood on the base of the knife. (This “substance” turned out to be a single red fiber.)

(Link to the memo Gary Gitchell sent to Genetic Design regarding the John Mark Byers Knife)



FACT: On January 27th, Genetic Design completed its tests on the traces of blood on the “John Mark Byers ‘Kershaw” Knife.” The test results “scared” inspector Gary Gitchell. The blood on the knife had a HLA DQ Alpha result of 1.1,4 but the more specific D1S80 test did not provide a result due to the minor amount of blood on the knife. Christopher Murray (also known as Christopher Byers), the supposed stepchild of John Mark Byers also had a HLA DQ Alpha of 1.1,4. THE BLOOD ON THE “JOHN MARK BYERS KNIFE,” MATCHES THE BLOOD OF CHRISTOPHER MURRAY (also known as Christopher Byers).

(Link to the results of the DNA test on the “John Mark Byers ‘Kershaw’ Knife.)



FACT: The Chief Medical Examiner, Dr. Frank Peretti performed the autopsies of the three victims. At the Echols trial he was asked to give his opinion regarding the injuries on Christopher Murray (also known as Christopher Byers). Dr. Frank Peretti testified that knife injuries on Christopher Byers were consistent with the “John Mark Byers ‘Kershaw’ Knife.”

(Link to Dr. Frank Peretti’s testimony)



FACT: A single RED fiber was “glued” to the blood on the base of the blade of the “John Mark Byers ‘Kershaw’ Knife.” A pair of child, Super Mario Brothers Nintendo underwear was recovered near the victims. The pair of underwear has red fibers on them. A separate single red rayon fiber was found on the clothes of the victims. Records could not be found of any comparisons made between the fiber found on the “John Mark Byers ‘Kershaw’ Knife” and the fibers found on the clothes of the crime scene.



FACT: After the results of the DNA tests on the Kershaw knife came in, the defense attorneys pleaded with Judge David Burnett to allow other officers not connected to the West Memphis Police Department to question John Mark Byers regarding the knife. Judge David Burnett ruled against the defense attorneys and allowed Detectives Gary Gitchell and Bryn Ridge of the West Memphis Police Department to question John Mark Byers about the knife he had given to Doug Cooper. The following facts will summarize what transpired during the course of the interview.



FACT: On the morning of January 26th, 1994, Detectives Gary Gitchell and Bryn Ridge questioned John Mark Byers regarding his knife. On pages 2 and 3, John Mark Byers identifies the knife and tells Gary Gitchell that he did in fact give the knife to Doug Cooper as a gift because “we were talking about knives and he was real friendly to me.”

(Link to the entire transcript at the bottom)


2nd Image of the “John Mark Byers ‘Kershaw’ Knife” taken at the West Memphis Police Department

FACT: During the January 26th interview on page 3, Detective Gitchell asks John Mark Byers, “Had you ever taken that knife hunting or used it recently just prior to giving it to um, what did you say his name was cook?”

Byers – “I think cook, NO THAT KNIFE HAD NOT BEEN USED AT ALL, it just been kept up, put in my dresser and I didn’t use it and THE REASON WHY WAS BECAUSE OF THOSE SERRATED EDGES.”

(Link to the entire transcript at the bottom)



FACT: In regards to Cooper, Byers states, “and it kinda had a grip on it that felt like pachmayr’s on a gun, and he just really liked it admired it and I really didn’t like it so I gave it to him… but it had not been out in the woods or anything.” This statement contradicts Cooper’s statements that he didn’t want the knife but Byers insisted that he take it.



FACT: Detective Gary Gitchell never questions John Mark Byers regarding this contradiction in statements.



FACT: Page 4 of the January 26th interview:

Gitchell – “Oh, oh, I follow you he, Ryan did not cut himself with the Kershaw.”

Byers – “Correct, no one’s been cut with the Kershaw.”



FACT: Page 4 and 5 of the January 26th interview:

Byers again states – “…but no sir, no one’s ever been cut. That Kershaw was given to me as a Christmas present and I didn’t want to hurt the guy’s feelings so I told him how nice it was and put it up and after I used it a time or two you couldn’t keep the, you couldn’t get anybody to sharpen it cause of the serrated edge, this thing is worthless.”

Ridge asks – “Did you use the knife?”

Byers – “I never used it, I would have used it hopefully, I was going to use it for deer hunting. That’s all I do is deer hunt but I never had an opportunity to use it on a deer.”



FACT: Page 5 of the January 26th interview:

Byers – “…and that Kershaw stayed put up in top of my chiffarrobe in the top drawer. We got a big chiffarrobe you know and it stayed put up in the top drawer of it.”

Gitchell -“Did um, any of your kids, Ryan or Chris know where that knife may have been at? I mean could they have gotten it out?

Byers – “No sir, I don’t think they could have because they just didn’t come in our room that much you know.”



FACT: Page 6 of the January 26th interview:

Byers – “I never saw any evidence or signs that they had (used the knife) and there was never any signs that they cut theirself with it, it was pretty sharp so there was never any evidence that they had cut or it ever being moved you know.”

Gitchell then gives Byers the knife and Byers identifies the knife as the one he gave to the fellow from New York.



FACT: Page 7 of the January 26th interview:

Gitchell – “Okay, let me explain a problem we had”

Byers – “Okay”

Gitchell – “And you need to answer this for me… we have found blood on this knife.”

Byers – “I can tell you where I might assume it might have come from”

Gitchell – “Alright”

Byers – “Uh, I got a deer this year”

Gitchell – “uh huh”

Byers – “and I was cutting it up to make some beef jerky and I had a filleting knife, a ginsu filleting knife and I thought of that knife and I tried to cut some of the deer as thin as possible and when I found out that it wouldn’t cut as think as the skinning knife was, I put it up. But that would be the only time it’s been around anything bloody it was would I was cutting some deer meat at home.”



FACT: Page 7 and 8 of the January 26th interview:

Gitchell – “Okay, alright, let me, let me go a little bit further and say there’s a problem with that, I mean I’m not saying that’s not true, the problem is we have sent this knife off and had it examined and it was the blood type of Chris on it.”

Byers – “Well Gary, I don’t have any idea how it could be on there.”

Gitchell – “That’s our problem.”

Byers – “I have no idea how it’s on there.”

Gitchell – “Why, why would this knife have his blood on it?”

Byers – “I have no idea Gary.”

Gitchell – “That’s what scares me.”

Byers – “I have no idea, I have no idea, how it could have any human’s blood type on it at all. I DON’T EVEN REMEMBER KNICKING MYSELF WITH IT cutting the deer meat or anything.”

Gitchell – “We’ve had it checked and it’s not animal’s blood, it’s what is called a higher ape, in other words of the ape human family category.”

Byers – “Gary, I have no idea how he could have got a hold of it, I have no idea when he could ever even touched it, matter of fact I don’t remember him ever touching it and I have no idea how it got on there.”

Gitchell – “That’s why I was asking about…”

Byers – “Gary, I don’t, I have no idea, I don’t, I mean I would be more than willing to take a polygraph test or anything. I have no idea how that got on there, done, and the last time I even remember using it was when I was trying to cut that deer meat into jerky. That’s the last time my wife probably even seen me with it.”

Ridge – “When was the last time you saw the knife?”

Byers – “The day I gave it to that fellow from New York.”

Ridge – “Do you remember the circumstances when you gave him the knife?”

Byers – “Yes, he was there at the house and we had eaten and he was lying on the couch and um, he had made a comment uh, how he liked knives you know and things like that and I had made a comment about the one that I had, and I went into the bedroom and got it and I said I would like to give you this, just as a Christmas gift. It’s getting close to Christmas. During all this filming you’ve been very nice to me and you’ve been very polite, you know we’ve become just friends, and I said I just you know, give it to you as a gift, and that’s all there was to it, oh, he said thank you very much, you know and he put it in his pocket.”



FACT: Page 9 of the January 26th interview:

Gitchell – “um, I need to account for this blood you see what…”

Byers – “I’ll be glad to try.”

Gitchell – “I got to, I got to ask you point blank, I’ve got to ask you point blank Mark, I’ve got to ask you point blank, were you around are participated in the murder of these boys?”

Byers – “No, not in any shape form or fashion, close as to them that I must have got, was when Officer (John) Moore and I was yelling in the woods, which they were across the ditch you know and down from us. That’s as close as I must have ever got to them that night, absolutely not, positively not, unequivocally not. No not at all.”

Gitchell – “Well there are other tests being run on this knife and we should, may have the results right now, where we’ve been waiting on them the last several days.”

Byers – “Gary, I don’t have anything to do with this, and how his blood got on that knife any way at all. I have no idea.”

Gitchell – “You know we had blood taken from Melissa?”

Byers – “Right”

Gitchell – “We had blood taken from um Ryan.”

Byers – “Ryan, he had mine.”

Gitchell – “We already had yours, so that’s what we’re trying to do is see if I could have been, If you have similar blood. We don’t know, we don’t know if there is a similarity blood. We don’t know.”



FACT: Page 12 and 13 of the January 26th interview:

Byers – “There’s not way, there’s no way, I have no idea how any part of Christopher’s blood got on that knife, but I there’s no way, there’s no way I would have anything to do with it at all and I’ve told exactly where that knife’s been to the must of I can remember it was not missing. It wasn’t been missing. I have no alternative reason for giving it to him other than he was a friend. He had admired it and I gave it to him as just a gift of kindness and that was all.”

Gitchell – “Okay, is there anything you want to mention while I’ve got the tape on? Because I’m going to conclude unless you have anything else?”

Byers – “Other than no shape, form or fashion was I involved in the murder of my son or his friends, or had anything to do with it, or knew anything about it, or participate in anyway, or had any type of piece of knife, tool, equipment, murder weapon to harm any of those children.”

Gitchell – “Okay, okay the time is approximately 10:10 am on Wednesday, January 26th, 1994.



FACT: Detectives Gary Gitchell and Bryn Ridge NEVER question John Mark Byers regarding his statements to Dough Cooper or the inconsistencies in their stories. According to statements by Doug Cooper, Cooper told Byers that he didn’t want the gift and he couldn’t understand why Byers was insisting that he take the knife. Byers insisted that he take the knife and told him that it was “sharp” and he proceeded to cut a piece of paper with it.

Doug Cooper claimed that John Mark Byers told him, “IT’S BETWEEN US.”

Doug Cooper ALSO claimed that John Mark Byers told him, “I want to keep it (the knife) in your car.” Refer to the top of the page for a more complete summary of Doug Cooper’s statements.

(Link to the statements made by Doug Cooper regarding the John Mark Byers Knife)



FACT: After Detective Gary Gitchell informs Byers that there is blood on the knife, Byers begins changing his story, stuttering and addressing Gitchell as “Gary.” When Gary Gitchell confronts Byers about his involvement with the murders, it is Gitchell who begins to stutter.

(Link to the entire interview between Detectives Gary Gitchell and Bryn Ridge with John Mark Byers on January 26th, 1994.)

Police Informant & Career Criminal Byers?

Re: “Chronology of Events”