IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF ARKANSAS
WESTERN DIVISION
TERRY HOBBS,
Plaintiff,
v.
NATALIE PASDAR, et al.,
Defendants.
CV NO.: 4-09-CV-0008BSM
DECLARATION OF MARIE HICKS
I, Marie Hicks, declare as follows:
1. My name is Marie Hicks. I am over the age of 21 and competent to give this declaration.
2. All of the information set forth herein is within my personal knowledge and is true and correct.
3. I am the mother of Pam Hobbs and the grandmother of Steven Branch, who was called Stevie, one of the boys killed in the Robin Hood Hills Murders which occurred on May 5, 1993. Stevie was Pam's son from her marriage to Steven Branch.
4. My daughter Pam was married to Terry Hobbs until 2004. I believe they were married in the mid 1980s. As a result, I have known Terry Hobbs from the mid 1980s to the present. Pam and Terry had a daughter, Amanda, in 1989.
5. Ever since the murder of Stevie, the press has been following the story of the three boys, their murders and the trial of three teenagers, the West Memphis Three, for those murders. After they were convicted, many people began to think the West Memphis Three did not commit the murders. As a result, there have been many articles written about the events and many questions raised about who committed the crimes. There have been numerous newspaper articles, many television news reports, and many postings on the internet, not just about the murders, the trials and the West Memphis Three, but also about the little boys who were killed and their families.
6. When word got out about the murders it seemed like so very many people from around the country heard about it and were interested in Stevie and his family. Many people sent notes and cards to our family. President Bill Clinton sent a letter of sympathy to Terry and Pam.
7. Right after the murders, the television show America's Most Wanted did a story on the case that people all over the country saw.
8. About a year after the murders, Pam and Terry and my husband, Pam's father, Jackie Hicks, Sr., went on The Geraldo Show to talk about the events of that night, May 5, 1993, to talk about Stevie, and to talk about our family.
9. Through the years, the newspapers have kept writing about the murders, the West Memphis Three and the families and the events surrounding the murders. Since 1993, the press has kept the story in the papers and on the television.
10. Hairs were found at the crime scene. In July 2007, the results of DNA testing were released. The DNA testing revealed that one hair was possibly the hair of Terry Hobbs, and one hair was possibly the hair of Terry's friend, David Jacoby. The papers reported the results of the DNA testing.
11. About that same time, in June, 2007, the West Memphis Police Department interviewed Terry. The papers reported that the West Memphis Police had interviewed Terry.
12. Terry gave interviews in July, 2007 to news media. He talked about the DNA and about whether he was involved in the murders. He said he had been questioned by the police. I saw a good number of these articles.
13. Terry also hired a spokesman. The spokesperson gave interviews with the press and talked about the DNA evidence and whether Terry was involved in the murders.
14. My daughter Jo Lynn had found in Terry's nightstand a pocketknife that Stevie used to carry with him everywhere, and that we thought he would have had with him at the time of the murders. This made me very concerned about why Terry had that knife.
15. In late 2007, one of the teenagers that had been convicted for the murders, Damien Echols went to court to try to get released based on the DNA and new evidence. His request of the court brought even more public attention to Terry, because his filing put forward the DNA consistent with Terry and his friend, the knife evidence and other evidence. Newpapers and television news made reports on the filing by Damien Echols. I saw all this press and attention, and members of my family were called by the news agencies for interviews and statements.
16. Terry was in the middle of all of this press starting in July of 2007 because the DNA was consistent with his. Also, Terry told the police in his police interviews in June 2007 that several of his relatives suspect him in the murders and the papers reported that as well. Terry was also in the press because his spokesperson was giving interviews and so was he.
17. I was very close to Stevie, and he would frequently visit me or stay overnight at my house. On one occasion, Stevie was over at my house visiting. He had been playing, and I went to look for him. I could not find him. Ultimately, I found Stevie hiding in one of my closets. When I asked him why he was in the closet, he told me he had gone to the bathroom (defecated) in his pants. Stevie told me that he was scared that Terry would hurt him for "messing" his pants, and told me that Terry always punished him severely when he had "accidents." Stevie told me that Terry had locked Stevie in the closet as punishment for having such accidents.
18. One time, Terry and his daughter, Amanda, were at my house. Out of nowhere, Amanda announced "Daddy [Terry] sticks his finger up my butt." Terry jumped up and grabbed Amanda and took her to another room. When they came back, Amanda said that she had been lying, that her daddy had not stuck his finger in rear end. I knew that a four year old would not just come up with that statement out of the blue, if there had not been some sort of abuse.
I declare under penalty of perjury that the foregoing is true and correct and that this declaration was executed in Mississippi County, Arkansas.
