Petition to vacate the convictions of Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin and Jessie Misskelley, Jr. (the West Memphis Three) based on new evidence presented in federal and state appeals filed on the behalf of these men.

In light of strong new evidence that Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin and Jessie Misskelley, Jr. were wrongfully convicted of murdering three boys in West Memphis, Arkansas in 1993, we, the undersigned, call on the Arkansas Attorney General to join efforts to vacate these convictions.

Some of us believe Echols, Baldwin and Misskelley are, in fact, innocent and that a tragic miscarriage of justice must be reversed immediately. We believe all three should be released and fully exonerated. Some of us are not sure whether the three are guilty are innocent, but we believe the overwhelming new evidence casts substantial doubt on their convictions. We believe they should get new trials at the very least.

When the Attorney General responds to this new evidence, he speaks on behalf of the state, on behalf of the public. We do not believe anyone's interests are served by fighting to uphold these convictions. These convictions and efforts to defend them, in light of the overwhelming new evidence in the case, erode public confidence in Arkansas' criminal justice system.

In the interest of justice, public safety and trust in the system, we respectfully ask the Arkansas Attorney General to consider the new evidence in this case carefully and thoroughly; to refrain from opposing efforts to overturn these convictions based on the evidence; and, instead, to join efforts urging the court to vacate the convictions immediately.