How could a jury of our peers convict three men of murder without any evidence?
Due to prosecutorial misconduct, the jury was misled and misinformed. Jessie’s coerced confession was legally inadmissible. Despite this fact, the confession was highly publicized in the media and the jury was not sequestered so they saw and read all the inflammatory stories being published during the trial. The jury was assured that the prosecution had irrefutable evidence proving the boys’ guilt. For example, Prosecutor Fogleman gave illegal and false information to the jury in his closing, stating that he was able to duplicate the marks on Byers’ body by cutting into a grapefruit with the knife in question. Fogleman was not under oath and this proven false statement concerning injuries to the victims was never even admitted into evidence.
