Podcast Summary: "The Moth" - Episode Featuring Damien Echols: "Life After Death"
Podcast Information:
- Title: The Moth
- Host/Author: The Moth
- Episode: Damien Echols: Life After Death
- Release Date: September 17, 2012
Introduction
In this poignant episode of The Moth, Damien Echols shares his harrowing journey from wrongful conviction to life after death. Told live at The Moth in New York City during the summer, Echols delves deep into his experiences on death row, the injustices he faced, and his path toward eventual release. This narrative provides a raw and unfiltered glimpse into the resilience of the human spirit amidst unimaginable adversity.
Arrival on Death Row
Damien begins by recounting his initial days on death row, describing the guards' brutal welcome:
“When I first arrived on death row, the guards decided they were going to welcome me to the neighborhood. So they took me to the part of the prison they call the Hole. It's a very small, very dark, filthy part of the prison that's in complete isolation.”
[02:04]
He details the relentless physical abuse he endured:
“They beat me so bad at one point that I started to piss blood. And I still wake up at night sometimes now, dreaming that I'm pissing blood again.”
[04:15]
Torture and Isolation
Echols describes the extent of his torment, highlighting the psychological and physical torture:
“They starved me. They tortured me.”
[04:45]
The isolation intensified his suffering, leading to long-term psychological scars:
"I used to sleep on a dead man's mattress and stare at a dead man's shadow and live in the cell with ghosts."
[09:30]
Arrest and Wrongful Conviction
Reflecting on his background, Damien shares insights into his early life and the events leading to his arrest:
“When I was a kid, my family was incredibly poor, beyond dirt poor. When we did finally move into a trailer park with running water and electricity, we thought we were really moving up in the world.”
[05:10]
He recalls the night of his arrest alongside his friend Jason Baldwin:
“It was me, Jason, my sister, and my girlfriend sitting in the house, in the living room, watching movies. Whenever the cops started beating on the door... they put me and Jason in handcuffs, threw us into the backs of cop cars, and took us to jail.”
[07:20]
Facing charges he vehemently denied, Echols outlines the absurdity of his conviction:
“They took us to trial. And the evidence was things like the Stephen King novels that I read, the music I listened to, the clothes that I wore, and they found us guilty.”
[09:00]
Trial and Sentencing
Damien details the courtroom experience, emphasizing the harshness of the sentencing:
“The whole time the judge is reading these dissonances, he's doing it in this really bored monotone voice... it's like being repeatedly punched in the head.”
[10:10]
He reflects on the emotional and psychological impact of being sentenced to death multiple times:
“I'm in complete and absolute shock and trauma. I was put on death row. I was in the cell for about a week before I noticed a shadow on the wall.”
[08:45]
Appeals and Release
Despite overwhelming evidence of his innocence, Echols faced numerous obstacles in his fight for freedom:
“Even whenever new DNA evidence came in that excluded me and the other two guys from the crime scene... the judge still said, this is not enough.”
[10:50]
As public interest grew, the Arkansas Supreme Court allowed the new evidence to be heard, leading to an Alford plea:
“What an Alford plea means is that I plead guilty and I walk out of the courtroom and I can still publicly maintain my innocence.”
[11:40]
Damien explains the desperation that led him to accept the plea deal:
“I knew if I didn't take that deal one way or another, I would never live to see the outside of those prison walls. So I took it.”
[11:00]
Life After Release
Now free after over a decade, Damien shares the ongoing struggles of rebuilding his life:
“I've been out of prison now for a little over 10 months, and I live in terror every single day. I'm scared of everything all the time, but I'm trying to fight my way through it.”
[11:50]
He emphasizes the enduring impact of his imprisonment and the continuous fight for personal peace:
“If there's one thing that I learned from 18 years in prison, it was how to fight.”
[12:10]
Conclusion
Damien Echols' story is a testament to endurance in the face of systemic injustice. His narrative not only highlights the flaws within the legal system but also underscores the profound personal toll of wrongful convictions. Through The Moth, Echols offers listeners a deeply personal account of survival, resilience, and the unyielding quest for truth and justice.
Additional Information:
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Background on Damien Echols: Damien is an author, poet, and aspiring tattoo artist. He is one of The West Memphis Three, a group that became the subject of HBO's documentary series Paradise Lost and Peter Jackson's West of Memphis. His memoir, Life After Death, was slated for publication by Blue Rider.
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Upcoming Events: The Moth Mainstage was scheduled to come to Austin, Texas on Friday, December 14th, presented by the Paramount Theater.
For more stories and live events, visit themost.org.
This summary captures the essence of Damien Echols' powerful storytelling on The Moth podcast, providing listeners with an in-depth understanding of his experiences and the overarching themes of injustice and resilience.