(PR) Supersuckers and Nashville Pussy will be auctioning autographed items on Skeleton Key Auctions designed to raise money for the defense fund of Damien Echols, Jessie Misskelley, Jr., and Jason Baldwin. The three Arkansas men, dubbed the West Memphis Three (www.wm3.org), were convicted of the 1993 murders of three elementary school children. Since their trials were chronicled by Joe Berlinger and Bruce Sinofsky in the HBO documentary, Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills, a groundswell of support has formed around the Echols, Misskelley, and Baldwin—support that includes a wide array of artists such as Metallica, Henry Rollins, Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder, Tom Waits, Winona Ryder, South Park creator Trey Parker, Will Ferrell, Johnny Depp, and Jello Biafra. Supersuckers have been staunch supporters of the West Memphis Three over the years.
They have always been gracious in donating items to folks around the world to raise funds for the WM3 Defense Fund. The items you will be bidding on are from their tour stop with Nashville Pussy in Dublin, Ireland.
Damien Echols, Jessie Misskelley, and Jason Baldwin—all teenagers at the time—were convicted in 1994 for the brutal murders of three eight-year-old boys (Stevie Branch, Michael Moore, and Christopher Byers) in West Memphis, Ark. despite flimsy circumstantial evidence—the bulk of which centered around the trio's alleged involvement in a Satanic cult—and a questionable and factually-inaccurate confession extracted from mentally-challenged Misskelley—the three have been serving stiff prison sentences for nearly two decades. Misskelley was sentenced to life plus 40 years, Baldwin is serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole, and Echols—who was deemed the ringleader of the attacks thanks to his love of black clothing and Metallica—is currently on death row as he waits for the outcome of his appeals.
The auctions will last until August 10th. You can bid on items autographed by recording artists, Supersuckers, Nashville Pussy, Mark Kozelek (Red House Painters/Sun Kil Moon), actor/filmmaker Norman Reedus, famed skateboarder Tommy Guerrero to name a few. All items are autographed.
For further information about the Supersuckers and other autographed items and to place a bid, log on to www.skeletonkeyauctions.com.