During his visit to the Toronto Film Festival, Johnny spoke to MTV News about the notorious case of the West Memphis Three, unjustly imprisoned for nearly 20 years: “[I]t could have been any of us,” Johnny said, referring to the miscarriage of justice that afflicted Damien Echols, Jessie Misskelley, and Jason Baldwin. “Because, what, you look different? [The authorities] put their eyeball on Damien [Echols] and didn’t take it off, even though everything around them —- they didn’t look at the insane amount of holes in the case. They just looked at the guy with the black T-shirt and the long black hair. It was a witch hunt.”

Johnny reflected on the changes that have occurred during Damien’s long incarceration; he emerged to a changed world. “Here’s a kid who went to prison wrongfully convicted. He went in at the age of 18 and came out at the age of 36. Suddenly you can take photographs with your phone. So much has changed,” Johnny said. “[I]t’s The Jetsons. It’s a whole ‘nother world.”

Nonetheless, Johnny spoke warmly of the things Damien has taught him: “I’ve learned so much from him and his experiences. Not just experiences of living in a tiny concrete room but the experiences from his mind and his strength and his ability to survive in a situation that’s nearly impossible.”

Photos of Johnny speaking to press representatives in Toronto are available HERE. The MTV News article is available HERE.

The Zone thanks Theresa for sharing the story; you can read more about Johnny’s visit to Toronto on the Zone’s News & Views forum.