Wednesday, September 24^th marked the first time that Jason Baldwin had been in a courtroom since his conviction for three counts of first-degree murder in March of 1994. He looked much older, very thin, perhaps less than hopeful as he was led into court by sheriff’s deputies. When Judge David Burnett dismissed the motions for new trials for all three defendants on September 11^th, Jason could hardly have been surprised. Still, when asked by reporters what his hopes were for Wednesday’s proceedings, he replied, "For justice to finally be served." Burnett’s ruling left both Baldwin and Jessie Misskelley Jr. with only their Rule 37 petitions left to be heard.

Jason’s claim of ineffective counsel - a "Rule 37" petition in Arkansas - centered on several issues. To begin with, Baldwin claims that the search and arrest warrants issued on June 3^rd, 1993, were faulty. The petition alleges that circuit court judge William P. "Pal" Rainey had "abandoned his detached and neutral role" by coaching WMPD Detective Bryn Ridge in the preparation of those documents. The petition also cites attorney Paul Ford’s failure to obtain a separation of Baldwin’s trial from that of co-defendant Damien Echols, as well as his failure to properly discredit the testimony of jailhouse snitch Michael Carson, whose juvenile record and LSD abuse should have been more vigorously pursued by Ford. During an in camera session during the trial, Burnett had ruled that Carson’s medical records were obtained inappropriately - though inadvertently - by the defense, and because it was the source of information about Carson’s drug abuse, it was inadmissable. Baldwin also claimed that Carson had been given information about the case by counselor Danny Williams, information that Carson later used to incriminate Baldwin from the witness stand. Burnett had ruled that Williams’s communications with Carson were of a counseling nature, and thus were considered privileged and inadmissable, and further ruled that Williams could not be called as a witness. He did, however, allow Ford to cross-examine Carson on whether or not he had a conversation with Williams about the case. Carson said that he did, but that it was after his "soft heart" compelled him to contact prosecutor Brent Davis in February of 1994, some seven months after he allegedly heard Baldwin’s incriminating statements.

That Ford was on the hot seat on Wednesday was to be expected. Baldwin’s new attorney, John Philipsborn, is responsible for proving that Jason received ineffective and incompetent counsel at his trial in 1994. While Ford surely knows the drill, it’s a bitter pill. Saying that he was "diligent" in developing alibi witnesses for Baldwin, in the end they were simply too unreliable to put on the stand. "I did not find successfully what I was looking for - an alibi that would not unravel on me." He said that he still believes in his former client’s innocence. "As much as I wanted to see Jason go free, I cannot imagine I would not have put on a witness if I thought it would help his alibi." Jason remembers it differently. "I remember always telling them I was innocent. I would tell [the lawyers] every time, there are people who know where I was on May 5 and May 6", he said from the stand, but, "they just kept shrugging me off."

Mark Byers was on hand to watch the proceedings that he hopes will lead to Jason’s and Jessie Misskelley's freedom. "I believe that finally there is an opportunity for a wrong to be made right. I do not believe Damien Echols will get the death penalty; I believe Jason and Jessie will walk free." Few believe that this hearing will make that happen. Claims of ineffective assistance of counsel are almost automatic in capital cases, and also rarely succeed, but Mark is still hopeful. "When Echols and Baldwin were convicted, I thought they had good lawyers. I started asking questions. I took Police 101 and realized there were a lot of things not answered." And once again, Mark took head on the issue of his so-called "change of heart" with regard to the innocence of the West Memphis Three. "One of the hardest things I've ever done in my life is accept the fact of being wrong. No one likes to admit you're wrong. No one wants to choke on crow, and all of the things you've said and done, and realize that you're wrong. I've always learned it took a lot bigger man to stand up and admit his mistakes, than to hide behind a lie."



Whether or not Burnett rules in his favor, Jason still has avenues for appeal. Matt Baldwin, who was fourteen at the time of Jason’s arrest, was in court to support his brother. "If Burnett doesn’t do his duty and free him, he knows that he will be freed by a federal court." Many predict that the case will indeed go that far, but Matt still has trouble accepting that the case ever got to court in the first place. "I think that it really had to do with [the fact that] he didn’t have enough money to hire the right experts and everything to show that it was impossible for my brother to have committed those murders. My brother and them should never even have been questioned." Matt echoes the beliefs of many of the West Memphis Three supporters that the three were targeted from the beginning, and that no amount of exculpatory evidence would steer the police or the prosecutors toward another suspect. On that subject, Mark Byers isn’t shy: "Terry Hobbs killed my son, and needs to take responsibility. I cleared my name with a polygraph test and if he’s innocent, why hasn't he done the same?"

For Jason Baldwin, Thursday marked the first time in the long history of the case that he took the stand in his own defense. He had difficulty talking about the events of fifteen years ago, but felt compelled to do so. "I felt I had to do it. It was necessary." It was of some comfort to his family for him to have a day in court, but what they really want is to bring him home. "It’s really been hard watching him grow up in there knowing that he’s innocent", Jason’s mother, Gail Grinnell said outside the courthouse, "and I’m really hoping that the judge will grant his release or a new trial." Saying that "It’s got my hopes up", she nonetheless lamented the nightmarish life that the family has lived for all these years. "It’s been horrible. Very horrible. Because knowing that he was innocent and he was so young, he had just turned 16. He was still a child."