"I Needed Somebody to Hate"
Untying the Knot: John Mark Byers and the West Memphis Child Murders, the new book on the case that many are calling the crime of century, is nearing completion, and more details will be available soon. The book chronicles the life of Mark Byers, arguably the most controversial character in a case steeped in disagreement and debate. Long regarded as the chief alternate suspect in the eyes of the public, Mark continues to spark as much contention today as he did back in the days when he was shooting pumpkins and burning mock graves to vent his anger against the three men he was sure murdered his son. "People have tried to take me out", he said to the cameras in Revelations: Paradise Lost 2, "but I’m still here, Jessie, Jason, Damien. Those names ring in my ears daily. And I still hate you." More recently, however, his words and actions are angering those who have maintained that the so-called West Memphis Three belong in prison and that two juries in 1994 convicted the right people. So what has changed?
John Mark Byers has lived through the murder of his eight-year-old son Christopher and two other boys, the unexplained death of his wife Melissa three years later, spent fourteen years as a suspect in the public eye, and a hellish fifteen months in the Arkansas Department of Corrections. But a startling series of new developments - including the discovery of DNA evidence pointing to another victim’s stepfather - has turned Mark Byers into a staunch advocate for the release of the convicted killers, dubbed the West Memphis Three by their supporters. Jason Baldwin, Damien Echols, and Jessie Misskelley, Jr. have spent fifteen years in prison for a crime that Mark Byers no longer believes they committed. "It's the worst nightmare you could ever imagine", Byers said recently on Larry King Live. "I know the nightmare that the three in prison feel to be wrongly accused." He also told Johnny Dodd at People, "I was fooled for fourteen years. But now I know that an injustice was dealt upon these boys by the State of Arkansas."
When asked by Jason Miles of WMC-TV in Memphis, "Do you think [Steve Branch’s stepfather] Terry Hobbs killed your son and the two other boys?", there was only a slight hesitation in his response: "In my opinion", Byers said, "I do. If it takes the last breath in my body, [seeing Terry Hobbs in jail] that’s my goal." Regarding the convicted men - notably Echols, who sits on death row in the Varner Supermax prison in Grady, Arkansas, Byers says, "I want him to know I’m here for him."
During his interview for Larry King Live, Echols said of Byers, "I appreciate everything he’s been expressing lately. I’ve heard him make comments like that several times on different local news stations and I’ve heard people repeat that to me. And I really, really do appreciate that. It means a great deal."
Byers and Echols, once fierce adversaries, are now united in the fight to save Echols’s life. They have joined forces with a cadre of celebrity supporters - Winona Ryder, Johnny Depp, Jack Black, Natalie Maines, Eddie Vedder (Pearl Jam), and Margaret Cho, to name a few - who have raised hundreds of thousands of dollars to fund a technological showdown with the State of Arkansas that promises to rival the O.J. Simpson and Sam Sheppard trials in drama and visibility. Forensic experts Dr. Michael Baden (O.J. Simpson), Dr. Vincent Di Maio (Scott Peterson), and former FBI profiler John Douglas (Mindhunter, Inside the Mind of the BTK Killer), have supplied the Echols defense team with enough horsepower to file a writ in federal court to have the conviction of Damien Echols overturned, or to grant a new trial. Echols’s attorneys have declared that they will be ready to file with the state courts by the middle of February, a step that was mandated by U.S. District Judge William R. Wilson, Jr., after which a hearing in federal court is expected in late spring.
Others are less enthusiastic about Byers’s change of heart. Amanda Hobbs, 19, daughter of Terry and Pam Hobbs, and the younger sister of victim Stevie Branch, thinks Byers is a hypocrite. "It makes me sick, it really does. It’s just crazy, you know? It’s like Mark Byers has been in these shoes for fourteen years and now he wants to try to put my father in those shoes?" Byers remains unmoved. "I personally believe it was a punishment crime that got out of hand."
But Terry Hobbs is still not considered a suspect by the West Memphis Police Department, though according to a CNN news story, WMPD Chief Bob Paudert says, "If they have DNA evidence that would give evidence that these three did not commit that crime, I would want to see it absolutely. I’m the first to say that if they have evidence to free those three I would support it 100 percent." The state prosecutor’s office has so far issued a "no comment" to reporters seeking information on the case.
Hobbs himself is stung by the accusations. "It’s hard as a parent to live with the loss of your home, of your wife, your family and then to have your friends and neighbors look at you and think, ‘Is there something else there?’ That hurts," he said.
But Mark Byers is haunted by the way he has felt for the last fifteen years. "I needed to hate somebody at that time in my life and I was blinded by rage, and anger, and grief", he told Miles, referring to a time not too long ago when he had no reason to believe anything other than what the state of Arkansas told him during the 1994 criminal trials. The new evidence has convinced him otherwise. Only time will tell what this uniting of the strangest of bedfellows will bring.
It is good to see him admitting to reality. You cannot deny evidence or the lack thereof in their case. They deserve to be freed.
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John Douglas' recent profile of the murderer points to Mark Byers not Terry Hobbs.
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Have you seen Terry Hobbs' recent police interview? He's muddled and deceptive and clearly trying to hide something. And he doesn't appear to have too good an alibi. Byers was at least partially investigated. And both step-fathers had a history of violence.
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What evidence exist to warrent Mr. Hobbs being considered a suspect?
Not much that has been released so far. The identification of the hair is not incriminating per se, and that is the only physical evidence there is, besides the palm print. And as far as the State of Arkansas and the WMPD are concerned, Mr. Hobbs is not a suspect. Mark has stated why he thinks Hobbs killed his son. If he wishes to address that in this forum, he is free to do so.
~Greg~
1/16/08
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It's odd that Hobbs was never thoroughly investigated in '93, wouldn't you say? I'm glad he is now helping them with their enquiries, finally.
Perhaps he can shed some new light on the events of May 5, 1993.
Very odd. It's plain that the WMPD never considered any of the parents suspects, with the exception of Mark Byers. Given Mark's background, this is understandable. Given his alibi, it is also understandable why they eliminated him so quickly from the list. What's less clear is why Hobbs was given a pass. He was not at home when Pam Hobbs was interviewed, and as far as anyone knows, they never came back to take his statement. What is also odd is that while Tony Anderson claims that he matched the palm print he found in the mud at the crime scene against the WM3 and all searchers and investigators who were at the crime scene, he did NOT match them against any of the parents. Although the parents had fingerprints taken, they did not have palm prints taken, and thus could not have been logically eliminated.
~Greg~
1/16/08
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"Very odd. It's plain that the WMPD never considered any of the parents suspects, with the exception of Mark Byers."
Greg,
I'm not sure where or how it is you got your facts but you are in error.
In the fall of 1992, Todd Moore was convalescing from a knee injury that kept him off work. He had been an over the road trucker and was on benefits for almost a year while he recovered.
The cub scouts that he led, in which all three victims participated, was one of the things he did with the time he had while he healed. Small wonder that those with a hidden agenda manage to overlook this fact with such alarming regularity, isn't it?
If it helps you in some way, I've seen the video of the three victims at various scouting activities so it's not like I'm speculating or merely repeating biased hearsay to pursue a political agenda.
Barely a month before the murders, Todd returned to work. The night of the murders he was returning from delivering a load in Louisiana. He worked solo since it was a short haul.
The only evidence to corroborate Todd's trip was the dispatch from his company, the bill of lading that came with his load and the fuel receipt for the trip. Of these, the fuel receipt was probably the most reliable since it's hard to explain a few hundred gallons of diesel poured out on the concrete or asphalt to fabricate an alibi.
In the case file duplicate is a copy of Todd's fuel receipt, or at least it was there when I looked at it in 1998-1999.
When I asked Gary Gitchell about this in 1999, he explained that they did, in fact, consider all parents suspects until ruled otherwise, admittedly the males more than females based on statistics for crime. What I didn't know, until Gary mentioned it, and Todd Moore corroborated it, was that the original fuel receipt, not a copy, was in the master case file in a plastic bag.
"What's less clear is why Hobbs was given a pass."
Given the fact that you clearly overlooked Todd's fuel receipt, this is hardly surprising.
Tell me, Greg, if WMPD went to the trouble to get the original fuel receipt that Todd had signed, do you have any theories as to why given his long standing relationships with people who worked there, that they would even bother?
Thanks in advance for your compelling writing. I look forward to more.
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Shaun,
I think I get what you're saying here, so let me clarify my point. When I said that no one but Mark Byers was considered a suspect by WMPD, I meant that no one was subjected to the amount of scrutiny that Mark was, which I'll demonstrate in a minute. As I also said, given Mark's past history, it was the prudent thing for the police to do. Of course, he was quickly eliminated as a suspect - at least as far as the police and prosecutor were concerned.
As far as Todd Moore goes, the WMPD actually spoke with Todd, which is more than they did with Hobbs. And as you point out, they went as far as digging into Todd's alibi with his employer, which shows that they did their due diligence to eliminate him as a suspect. Why didn't they put that same effort into checking out Terry Hobbs? They spoke with with the Moores on 5/10/93, and with Pam Hobbs on the same day. Since there is no transcript of the Hobbs interview, we have to rely on Stan Burch's notes, which say simply that Hobbs was not home at the time. As far as anyone knows, they never came back, and Hobbs himself verified this during his June 2007 interview with WMPD. Even without interviewing Hobbs, they could have run a background check. Had they done this, it is quite possible that they would have returned to the Hobbs house to interview Terry. And if they had done all that, it is also possible that the recent hoopla about the "Hobbs hair" would be causing less of a flap. Trying to establish an alibi almost fifteen years after the fact would be challenging for anybody.
On the other hand, I KNOW they ran Mark's background, and even went so far as to ask the FBI in Quantico - Tom Salp was the agent - whether Mark fit any kind of profile that they be able to work up. Salp, according to Gitchell's notes, said that Mark "couldn't have done it." And Mark Byers was the only parent actually accused of the crime by police:
Ridge- okay. Well what I want to say right now, and what I'm going to say is that, I may have information, this information suggests strongly that you have something to do with the disappearance of the boys. And ultimately of the murder. Okay. What is your response to that?
At this point, Sudbury chimed in, "We're going to talk to the other fathers too." Obviously, that didn't happen, so despite Gitchell telling you that all the parents were suspects, they weren't all treated that way.
And that is my point.
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"the WMPD actually spoke with Todd, which is more than they did with Hobbs."
Are you saying his hair sample miracled it's way into the State crime lab?
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I’m saying no such thing. It is a matter of record that Terry Hobbs gave no statement to police until June 21, 2007, when Prosecutor Brent Davis ordered Hobbs to be brought in (even though it was "voluntary.") At that time, if Hobbs had been previously interviewed by police, he said nothing of it. The record indicates that he had not. He also told Rachel Geiser, an investigator from Inquistor Inc. during a February 24th, 2007 interview at Hobbs’s home, that "he had never been interviewed by the police regarding his whereabouts or any information he had to offer about the search." Finally, Hobbs told Mark Byers that not only had he never been interviewed by police, but that he had never given any hair samples to anyone.
So your question is interesting. WMPD does indeed show a sample of "combed head hair" from Terry Hobbs being sent to the Arkansas State Crime Lab. How did that hair get there? Perhaps as interesting is the question of what happened to it after it got there, if indeed it ever existed. None of the hairs were ever subjected to any DNA testing, or if they were there is no record of the results. Blood and other samples were tested by Genetic Designs in Greensboro, North Carolina, and the state crime lab paid the bill. Apparently, they didn't feel that it was worth the expense to test all the samples they retrieved, including hair samples from Mark Byers, Todd Moore, and others.
So what was in the envelope labeled E-159 if not the head hair of Terry Hobbs?
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I am so happy to see your real story being told, Mark. Congrats on the book. I applaud your courage and your humanity. Much love to both you and Jacki stay strong. I am sad that in order to help free three innocent men you have to suffer the fools gladly for a bit, nons will pour in to try to humiliate you and silence you, however you have never let the riff raff hold you back before and you won't now.
united in the struggle, Em
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Did the events of Oct 29th 2007 change the book significantly?
Also will the book still be used to show and debunk Mara's disinformation campaign she has waged for decade or more?
Also will Mara need to come out with a 2nd Edition of Devil's Knot where she uses Microsoft Word to replace all of the "Mark Byers" entries to "Terry Hobbs" entries? Sarcasm of course but mild sarcasm considering how incredibly inaccurate her writing is/was and the very VERY sad fact that they are actually making a movie based on such disinformation is a testament to the foundations of the supporter movement and Hollywood in general and so called "artist", “writers” and “movie makers” involved in this case.
Devil’s Knot will remain an example of the propaganda created by zealot activist who can’t be trusted. I hope Untying the Knot remains true to its intent.
Scott,
As to your first point, I assume you are referring to the date of the Echols defense team's federal filing. It didn't change the book as much as you'd think. Up until final publication, we are having to keep it up to date. Without doing that, we're really only telling half the story, fascinating though that first half is. Mark's change of position is nothing less than dramatic, and including that in the book is an ongoing process, and an important one. We can't leave unfinished what is arguably the most ironic development of this case to date: the strange bedfellows, Mark Byers and Damien Echols. Can you beat that? But based on the timetables of both the State of Arkansas and the Echols defense team, there should be, in my opinion, some kind of resolution by the summer of this year. Hard to believe, isn't it?
All I can say about the film, Devil's Knot, is that since Mara Leveritt no longer has any rights to that book - or use of the title as well, I would assume - the new owners can do pretty much whatever they want with it. I would imagine that their screenwriting progress hinges on the same thing our book does: what happens to Damien Echols in the end? Is it possible that after all these years, all the legal and forensic team's efforts, is it possible that Echols will actually be executed? It is almost too much to conceive. Will Governor Beebe go back on his public statements that he would not be considering pardons or clemency? Frankly, that declaration seemed a bit premature; how can clemency be denied before it is petitioned for?
But that isn't what the Echols defense team, or Mark Byers for that matter, wants, is it? Clemency just means Echols will not be executed. The best case scenario, I suppose, would be Echols's full exoneration and immediate release, which would also spring Jason Baldwin and Jessie Misskelley. In other words, full pardons for all three. At the very least, however, the defense wants a new trial for Echols. What they don't want is a flat out denial from the courts.
There were many things that came together in Mark's life at certain times and in certain places - and with certain people - that brought him to the point he is today, and which continue to move him toward what he is becoming, and that's the snapshot we have to take at some point, and all I'm willing to commit to right now is publication sometime in 2008. Mid-2008? You never know . . . and in spite of the title, Untying the Knot is not about Devil's Knot the book, Devil's Knot the movie, or Mara Leveritt, or even about the guilt or innocense of the West Memphis Three, although each is an integral part of the story. It's about all those things, and much more, as they intersected with the life of John Mark Byers. Straight up. No bullshit.
. . . and that's where we're headed, right? Maybe we could have called the book 'Absence of Bullshit", but I'm not sure I'd be able to pull that off. Could get close, though
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Thanks for the reply Greg I look forward to reading the book.
I also agree we will know by Summer where this case is headed. I think it is very possible Damien Echols will be executed, not this summer of course, but in the future after the appeals are exhausted. I see nothing currently in his appeals that would change his case and sentencing.
Arkansas is understandably concerned on releasing killers after DuMont episode.
I understand this book is not all about Devil's Knot but it was my impression from following it and reading some of the content that it was about exonerating Mark Byers name. After being run through the mud for over a decade by both Mara and the supporter movement I thought it was the counter to the feeding freenzy created by supporters of the WM3. Of course some of that has changed and now there is a new target.
Scott, personally I'm not sure if Mark's name will ever be "exonerated" by those unwilling to look beyond their feelings and biases and toward the facts, but I will say that Devil's Knot, the book, is analyzed in detail. Thanks for writing and stay tuned!
~Greg~
1/16/08
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Yes Sheer, I suppose some might think that, but the DNA points to Terry Hobbs and NOT Mark Byers and that is a bit more incriminating...don't ya think?
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The experts don't seem to think so Cnad?
Thomas Fedor: The two hairs that I know about – the one that could have in fact come from Mr. Hobbs and the one that could have in fact come from David Jacoby – constitute what I call weak evidence. Because there are other people it could have come from and there isn’t any way to really prove our selection of possible sources for that hair. I don’t think – my personal opinion – I don’t think that that hair evidence would be enough to convict Mr. Hobbs or Mr. Jacoby or anyone that would be in a similar situation because it’s simply not strong enough. The percentages I gave of people who could be the source of those hairs are 1.5% of the population in the respect to one hair and 7% in respect to the other hair. That’s not particularly strong evidence and especially in the context of what most people are accustomed to with DNA testing. These odds are considerably weaker than what we would call an STR DNA test that virtually provides a (? source?).
Dennis Riordan: I agree with Tom – and here’s the significance of that. If Terry Hobbs or someone was tried on this evidence, a lawyer would be up there saying how many people are there in West Memphis or in Memphis? 1.5% of them that’s thousands of people - that’s a reasonable doubt.
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"Hobbs himself is stung by the accusations. "It’s hard as a parent to live with the loss of your home, of your wife, your family and then to have your friends and neighbors look at you and think, ‘Is there something else there?’ That hurts," he said."
I'd no sooner jump on the Terry Hobbs is guilty bandwagon than I did on the Mark Byers bandwagon or the Damien, Jason and Jessie bandwagon... IMO the WMPD caused all the accusations and suspicions in this case; by failing to do a proper investigation. They failed at even the most elementary police procedure. They didn't interview ALL the parents of the victims, they failed to put together a search and rescue team as soon as the boys were reported missing, they failed to secure the crime scene, they failed to secure the evidence, they failed at the medical examiners level even as far as establishing an accurate TOD, they LOST evidence, they failed to tape interviews and they failed to check EVERY possible suspect in the case. Gitchell based his famous "11 on a scale of 1 to 10" on a faulty confession and the WMPD didn't even follow through on the details of that. The confession was based on what the investigators "considered" happened. They didn't even take Jessie to the crime scene to have him show them first hand what happened, why do you suppose they missed that opportunity?
I think Mark is justified in believing an injustice was done to him, the families of the victims and to Damien, Jason and Jessie.
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Raven,
I have many reasons to believe that Terry Hobbs is my son’s killer. I ask you: if you are innocent, then WHY all the lies in the WMPD interview? Also, how do you remember where you worked, the address, street name, etc., yet not remember what you drove to work? Or lie about Stevie winning the derby race in scouts when Steve did not even finish in the top 3? WHY lie about things that don’t even matter?
Try this: Terry Hobbs states that he first met me at 6-6:30 PM on the evening of May 5th in Dana Moore’s front yard. That is impossible; I was in court in West Memphis. I couldn’t be in two places at the same time. The list of Hobbs’s lies is very long. There are many other things pointing to Hobbs that at this time I am not at liberty to say.
JMB
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Mark,
Thank you for your reply. I think what you have listed as evidence of Mr. Hobbs guilt at best is circumstantial. I have no idea why Mr. Hobbs would lie during theWMPD interview just as I have no idea why Damien Echols lied during the Larry King interview. I am more inclined to grant Mr. Hobbs a margin of error due to the fact as you know when you lose a child sequence of events, times and dates tend to blur and run together. You stated there are other things pointing to Mr. Hobbs that you are not at liberty to say, when will this information be released? Is there specific or a special set of circumstances that must be met prior to the release of the information?
Thank you,
Raven
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If I was in Terrys shoes (hopefully never) I would have a very hard time with timelines and etc. I dont consider alot of this lies, confussion yes, but not lies.
If this is really you Mark...why do you like being in front of the camera so much? If you are so hurt as you claim to be then why do you always make sure that you are in the spotlight and have from the beginning?
Why did you say that you had been done the way Chris had been done when you were a child but you had just not died?
I dont understand you at all sir and feel like you are not helping yourself out by all your boasting.
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Those three dumb teenagers could not have pulled something like this crime off. Period. And there is certainly no evidence that they did. Jessie's stories are just that - crazy, messed up stories made up to please the authorities. I have also never believed Mark Byers was involved. And now I question why so many are convinced Hobbs did it. Maybe we are missing some more facts or evidence. No matter what, there were plenty of others who should have been fully investigated at the time. I've seen police incompetence before, but nothing quite as bad as this. It's horrible to think that the killer of three little kids could just walk away from the scene and get completely away with it.
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Being a mother of 4 if anyone of them was taken from me in a similar fashion I would just like Mark need someone to blame and someone to hate. I believe in the Lord and would trust that he would bring someone to justice in his way. However, this would not lessen my pain as I'm sure it does not Mark's. In response to Hobbs being pointed to now. I'm not sure that this is a proper way to proceed. I would want good solid evidence before I pointed any fingers. Mark you were so wrongly suspected there are three men that I believe have been falsely convicted and I would not want to inflict this type of pain on anyone else. Mark I feel that you have been served an terrible injustice by the media that was involved in this case from the beginning. I as a parent would have been just as out spoken. There are people who believe you spoke when you should have been silent, I say SCREW them. You were the parent, although you were constantly identified as the STEP FATHER you had adopted this boy and that isn't a decision that is taken lightly. You were and are in every sense of the word his FATHER. You had the right to be angry, devastated and numb over this horrible crime. I felt that you had every right to speak out. It is unfortunate that the WMPD did not focus on any others besides the three they convicted. You were only going on the case the prosecuting attorney had built. With new evidence in the case coming forward, I fear they may never bring your sons killer to justice. There has been to many years that have gone by. I want you to know I support you. I have supported you from the beginning. Bless you and your family and remember to do what you feel is right no matter how anyone else precieves it.
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wow some of this stuff is really compelling ive studied for so long on this case, read all the books, watched the videos and im still at a loss sometimes just when i think ive figured it out boom! something new comes along i would just like to say that i was one of those who thought that mr byers was guilty as well along with a number of other individuals however as ive found more info and delved into it quite aggressively i see that at this point i dont see anyone who is really suspicious of being guilty in this crime i feel so horribly for the families of these boys and anyone related to the case whos lives were forever changed on may 5 1993 they are all the victims here and i would just like to say that i truly appreciate the site mr byers and for you taking the time to talk to me and befriend me i look forward to talking to you again and anything at all that i can do please DO NOT HESITATE TO CONTACT ME!! i will keep your family in my prayers as i will also be following every instance of the case and purchasing the book when its released
yours truly
brandy f
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Mark... Just remember you promised me a signed copy of this bud!
Terry Hobbs confessed to being in those same woods, at 6.00pm, when he'd claimed of never even knowing they existed? Now what would have led him to those woods at that time....
I am now eager to get my fingers on a copy, as you had cheekily claimed i would.
Mark, let them keep thinking your 'county stupid', 'they' like to think that i am also
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i wonder if mark byers is the father of Christopher byers. someone should check this out because i remember chris' fathers last name being murry. mark also never presented adoption papers proving he legal adopted chris. not trying to be offensive im just thinking out loud.
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Very good question, and one that has been asked many times. Mara Leveritt, in her 2000 book, Devil's Knot, even went so far as to state that there were legal issues involved if Christopher had been buried under a name he had no legal claim to. We cover this question in depth in Untying the Knot. The short answer is that there was a legal adoption.
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kristy,
How about I call you an assclown OR a PAB or many other things I could say? (is it you) Hell no frikking santa clause. As to what happened to me, YOU should listen & learn before YOU stick both feet in mouth. I was telling of a DREAM. Now to the camera part, you are so wrong. I stayed out of the camera's eye for like 8yrs. As for NOW you better know I will be in front of every camera that wants to talk to me & let the world know the WM3 are innocent & - in my opinion - terry hobbs is GUILTY. So the next time you visit here I am telling you to pick your words very carefully. I won't be nice with my answer to you. DISRESPECT is something I deal with DIRECT. So read, listen & learn before you post here again. If this needs to go to next level come to www.rugsville.yuku.com
There we can talk things out & YOU will learn much. This site isn't for digging dirt.
john mark byers
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I am like the writer who says every time she thinks she has it all figured out something new arises and changes her mind. This is so similar to the Ramsey Case. So many twists and turns. BUT....I keep going back to the detail of Jessie's confession and I cannot get past it. Too much, too out of left field. But the rest of the pieces don't seem to fit that the WM3 are without question the culprits. I was at 1 time convinced Mark Byers HAD to have done it...when Melissa died I felt he had "shut her up" because she was leaving him and he did not trust her. That thought still moves me in his direction sometimes...JUST SO MUCH! And it was all probably done by the "Chicken Man." I know one thing - SOMEWHERE, IF HE OR SHE OR THEM ARE STILL LIVING, A HORRENDOUS MONSTER WALKS IN THE MIDST OF SOCIETY, I BELIEVE WITHOUT ANY REMORSE WHATSOEVER, INWARDLY LAUGHING AT THE SCREWBALLS WHO COULD NEVER FIGURE THIS THING OUT. 1 more thing - to those who think "the 3" were not smart enough to cover it all up - come on now, where are the sophisticated maneuvers it would have taken? Stab the clothes in the ground, take a few with you, put 1 body here and 1 there, bikes apart, maybe to confuse. Hurt the 1 who fought the most or said or did something you particularly disliked. Had something with you to throw water on the bank and took enough time to clean up well...who knows. But what luck someone had - no witnesses, when there could have been so easily. I think Damien had an awful lot of anger he could have unleashed, but so did Byers and he had the added advantage of being not quite right in the head (if he were upstanding, there would not be the history of him harming his 1st wife, terrorizing those children by her, the history with law-breaking that he has, the lies he has told (COME ON NOW!!!), etc., etc. If he is on the up and up, he should be acting on the big screen because that man has it going on in the drama realm. He could be the villain in a Bond film and break box office records. Can you imagine, assuming him innocent, what it was like for little Chris to look up to that face ranging down upon him with a weapon in his hand? Think about the grave-side rant in PL2 at Mellisa's grave - to see that is to see a maniac out of control. The medicines he takes - no wonder he passed the polygraph. Anyone could have. That small boy is the saddest figure of all. A wasted mother most of the time and a character out of Chainsaw Massacre as a step-father who was witnessed abusing you; psychiatrists said Christopher had to have been abused sexually to be acting out as he did; arousing himself, setting fires, etc., etc. And not getting his medication all the time nor on time. He never had a chance for a genuinely happy life I do not believe. At least Stevie and Michael had more stable homelives. No matter what I believe, what a travesty if Damien dies and then a "real" perpetrator is found. What horror to even imagine such a thing.
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