scene and Jessie subsequently changed his story to go along with the police. Jessie claimed that he caved in under pressure of the interrogation. When given another polygraph, on whether he had ‘made up the confession’, he passed. The damage was already done. Damien Echols and Jason Baldwin were both arrested later that evening. For the next nine months, the media fed the public with stories circulating rumors about Satanic worship in their community. They printed stories on blood drinking, devil worship, and demon orgies. The media also wrote about the Wicca religion, but never differentiated between the two. They preached that Wicca, Satanism, heavy metal music, and astrology were all linked together and part of a grand conspiracy that involved human sacrifice. The encyclopedia of Witches and Witchcraft defines Satanism as the worship of Satan, or the Devil, the god of evil in Christianity. This belief is far less common than many would believe. In contrast, Wicca (commonly confused with Satanism) lives by a common creed:Eight words the Wiccan Rede fulfill; An it harm none,Do what ye will.McNeal 5This translates into the right of all people to choose their own paths, as long as their choices do not bring injury to another. Wiccans are not devils or Satanists. Wicca is a pre-Christian religion devoted to nature. When the Catholic Church wanted to take over the European’s public worship of pagan gods, they adopted the image of the Wicca consort as the devil. This image still survives today. The Wicca religion does not acknowledge the existence of Satan. If Wiccans do not acknowledge Satan, then how can they worship him? No evidence, even to this day, has been found to support that Damien Echols has ever participated in any type of satanic activity.Jessie Miskelley went to trial first. Since his confession implicated Damien and Jason, he was tried alone. There was zero evidence convicting Jessie. Th...
