"Paradise Lost," the 1996 HBO documentary that brought national attention to the plight of the West Memphis Three, will be rebroadcast beginning next week.
"Paradise Lost: The Child Murders of Robin Hood Hills" and "Parardise Lost 2: Revelations" will be available on HBO's mobile app HBO Go on Tuesday August 23 and will be available on HBO On Demand on August 24 (HBO Go is available free to HBO subscribers but Time Warner Cable customers currently do not have access to the app).
"Paradise Lost 1" will then air on HBO on August 29 and "Paradise Lost 2" on August 30.
A third documentary, "Paradise Lost 3: The Purgatory," which was produced by HBO, will get a limited theatrical release in January.
Brooke Cain isn't always proud of the number of hours she logs in front of the TV, but her loss of brain cells can be your gain. From reality shows to sitcoms to the more serious stuff, Brooke keeps her DVR smoking so that she can help keep you in the know. Brooke also tweets for Happiness is a Warm TV (you can follow 
Comments
The Responsibility for this Travesty of Justice
Wed, 01/18/2012 - 11:14 — markg91359In the discussion about the West Memphis 3, one point that should be repeatedly addressed is the decision by the juries to find all three boys guilty of first degree murder based on skeletal and flimsy evidence. There should never have been convictions in any of these cases based upon the evidence that was presented by the state. Apparently, the good people of Jonesboro who sat on this jury had no conception of what the phrase "proved guilty beyond a reasonable doubt" meant. It doesn't mean convicting three teenagers based on a bad confession whose details depart from the actual crime scene. It doesn't mean sending someone to death row based on unrecorded statements that other teenagers allegedly heard these young men make about the murder.
I work within the legal system in another state and I can assure that no jury where I live would send teenagers to death row or life imprisonment based upon such a shaky, ridiculous case.
Yes, the prosecution bears responsibility for bringing these charges. Yes, the trial judge should probably have set a verdict supported by so little evidence aside.
However, in the final analysis the men and women who sat on this jury failed Jonesboro, failed these unfortunate young men charged with these crimes, and failed their civic duty. As a result of that failure, three men spent 18 years of their lives in prison for crimes that it is very unlikely they committed.
I hope the people who sat on this jury wake up in the middle of the night once in a while and ponder the travesty that resulted from their inability to apply any common sense to this case. I hope there is some anguish, some desire to do better next time, and some honest-to-God regret over the nightmare that they are partially responsible for.
Finally, I hope the community of Jonesboro will accept some responsibility for this as well. These jurors came from your ranks. If people in your community are willing to send fellow citizens to death row based on such a case, I could not in good conscience recommend to anyone that they move to your state and community. This case has laid your community bear as a place where prejudice and emotion prevail over logic and the proper performance of civic duties. I do not care to hear of Jonesboro, Arkansas again.
Agree on West Memphis 3
Wed, 01/18/2012 - 12:29 — brookecain (author)I agree with you. There's a part of this 3rd documentary in which they reveal that one guy in Jonesboro actively worked to get on the jury of Echols and Baldwin so that he could persuade everyone else that the boys were guilty. The guy ended up being the foreman of the jury and told the other jury members stuff that wasn't allowed in the trial.
Unfortunately, travesties like this are not unique to Jonesboro. Happens all the time, all over the country.