Tonight, at 9:45pm ...

[Shindig]

ITV do another documentary! Huraah for everyone!

Not content with accidentally incriminating Michael Carlos*son and determined to scare us with global warming, they now try to get Michael Sheilds off the hook.

Ah, Michael Sheilds. The daft prick who bricked a Bulgarian bartender and got 15 years for it. But, hey, his family know he's innocent because someone else confessed to it (a confession later retracted because it portrayed as too pissed to throw anything).

Yay for justice!

 

[snakeboy_16]

Ah, so, 21.45 pm the show, k.

 

[The Don't]

Nahhhhh he's innocent

 

[Tom]

only ITV... or possibly Channel 4.

 

[Shindig]

Nah, Channel 4's stuff is generally decent. I've got a Dispatches special on my HD about Chernobyl.

ITV have just had the Mike Baldwin week.

Channel 5's now a freak show.

Nahhhhh he's innocent

Convince me. Without using the word 'apparently'.

 

[The Don't]

Convince me. Without using the word 'apparently'.

Supposedly, he was tucked up in bed.

 

[Shindig]

Tucked up in bed whilst your mates celebrate a Champions' League success. Yeah, that'll hold.

The only person with the power to get him off was Skankey, but he was too pissed to confess, remember or admit to anything. Meanwhile, his family stick blindly with him.

Very pointless.

 

[Tom]

Nah, Channel 4's stuff is generally decent. I've got a Dispatches special on my HD about Chernobyl.

ITV have just had the Mike Baldwin week.

Channel 5's now a freak show.



Convince me. Without using the word 'apparently'.

actually ive no idea why i said that, i'd like to apologise to Channel 4, its no where near on the same plane of ****ness as ITV.

Channel 5 just buy shows from the Discovery channel.

 

[The Don't]

I was just reading "The Case" on http://www.freemichaelshields.org/ and couldn't help but laugh at the part I've made bold:

A Timeline of Events

May 29 Martin Georgiev is attacked with paving slab.

May 30 Liverpool youths Michael Shields, Graham Sankey, Anthony Wilson and Bradley Thompson arrested. Sankey released after questioning. Others detained overnight, Michael chained to a radiator.

Jun 01 Sankey flies home, overheard saying he has "won the lottery".

 

[Shindig]

Anthony Wilson!

Anyway, Sankey's only willing to do 5 years in one of our prisons. There's a lot in it for him, if his confession was up to scratch. Pity he started it with an exagerration of how much he drank.

 

[The Don't]

Thing is though, how can Shields be guilty when Sankey wrote this confession?

Sankey's Confession

"I GRAHAM SANKEY, wish to make the following confession: On Sunday, May 29 2005 I was in the Bulgarian resort of Golden Sands near to the Port of Varna at about 5am.
I unfortunately had far too much to drink; I had been drinking lager for the better part of the day. In the evening I estimate that I drank nearly a full bottle of vodka and I was very, very drunk.

I left the PR Club and I was making my way to my hotel. I remember seeing a disturbance and a fight was taking place involving a large number of people, some of whom were wearing red shirts.

I could see bottles being thrown and as I drew closer a bottle smashed on the wall behind my head. As I turned to see where the bottle had come from I saw three men running at me with bottles and bricks in their hands.

I panicked and stupidly picked up a brick and threw it in the direction of the men running towards me. I saw the brick hit one of them. I panicked and I turned and ran away and returned to the hotel.

I did not know at that time that Mr Martin Georgiev had been injured.

I was arrested (with others) by the Bulgarian police.

The following day I was questioned by an investigator. I was utterly terrified and denied any involvement in the incident.

I still did not know about the injuries to Mr Georgiev. I was then released and I discovered that Mr Georgiev had been seriously injured. I then returned to Liverpool.

I accept that I must have caused the serious injury to Mr Georgiev.

My conscience has been tormenting me ever since. I read in the papers about Michael Shields' trial, and I felt that I could not let an innocent man take the blame for what I had done.

So I instructed my solicitor, Mr David Kirwan, to make public my acceptance of responsibility and my willingness to accept fully the consequences of my actions.

I expected that the Bulgarian court would accept my admission and free Mr Shields. I was horrified that the court has refused to do this, so I am making this signed confession in the hope that an innocent man will no longer have to take responsibility for what I admit I did.

Finally, I want to say that I bitterly regret what I did to Mr Georgiev. I wholeheartedly apologise to him, his family and the Bulgarian authorities.

I am only 20 years old, and am appalled that I have ruined Mr Georgiev's life and that Michael Shields, an innocent man, has received blame for what I did.

I just wish that I had my time over again."

 

[Shindig]

Would a man who drank that much be capable of a reliable account of events?

 

[The Don't]

Ah, so basically, Sankey has written a confession to clear his conscience yet keep him a free man at the same time. Very cunning. I'm impressed.

 

[Shindig]

Possibly, yes.

Boooo!

 

[Haukur Gudnason]

I don't think there can be any argument over the fact that there is certainly grounds for reasonable doubt, and the policing methods are dubious at best.

That said the show tonight wasn't the best or most even handed piece of investigative journalism I've ever seen.

 

[Shindig]

Well, the Bulgarian law is all to hell. This quote from one of Sheild's defenders was daft, though.

"I felt sorry for him at first [Gorgiev], but by insisting it was Michael that attacked him he is just trying to get his compensation money.

I'd like to think you can remember who dropped a ******* paving slab on your heed.

 

[Vazza]

"They were dark skinned and had dark hair...I have normal white skin and normal fair hair"

 

[zul-aid]

Since none of us were there when the incident happened none of us can judge... however going on from another situation involving people in overseas courts about 12 months a go 9 Australians were arrested in Bali, Indonesia trying to traffic several kilos of heroin into Australia. Scott Rush one of the nine arrested had his parents appear on TV and was portrayed as a boy who was a good young christian who wouldn't hurt a fly problem was they forgot or later according to them the TV station request that they not divulge anything to do with his previous convictions with drug possession and dealing because his case was still before the Bali courts who are not afraid to use the death penalty (he got 20 years or life). Case-inpoint, don't trust anyone on TV reporting about a court case when they are not talking facts (thats on both sides) if the drunk friend did it why isn't he in Bulgaria wishing to cop the punishment deemed sufficient by the Bulgarian court for his friend? Also that confusion i could have written that and I wasn't there obviously he would have sobered up once he got on the flight back to Liverpool otherwise why would they let him on the flight - also once you've had a big night drinking (especially celebrating) do you remember clearly any point of that night importantly the recovery? Because he would have stopped drinking once he was being chased.