At 12:41:12 on 04-10-2005, Diablos Rojos delighted uk.sport.football.clubs.liverpool by announcing:
Ah yes, so it would seem. I should have said 'properly identified'
George Best 3984You've explained nothing yet. Why not try explaining why you're so stupid, were your parents retarded? Too late to backtrack...
Q&A with Oleg Atanbuttov, defending lawyer:
Q: What do you expect in the trial further on?
A: Regretfully, I do not believe that the appeals court would review the evidence, so far as the authorship of the crime is concerned. But I think the strong side of the defense is that the procedure of recognition of Michael Shields was obviously vitiated.
Q: In what way was it vitiated?
A: First of all, the persons subjected to recognition hardly look like Michael Shields. Secondly, my client was not allowed to pick up a number on his own. Shields has claimed that every time he appeared for recognition he held the same number. Besides, in only one of the series of recognitions - on June 16 - the procedure was performed in the presence of a lawyer.
I have also objected the blatant insimilarity of Michael Shields with the rest of the people who appeared for recognition.
Q: Do you find such close similarity between Michael Shields and Graham Sankey?
George Best 3982So by your rationale every person proved innocent or who doesn't get to court due to lack of evidence is really...
A: I have not seen Sankey personally, but according to the staff in Crystal Hotel where they stayed, the two looked quite alike in height and stature.
(Note that Sankey was actually detained by police at the time but was never involved in an ID parade and was released without charge)
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The only description police had after the attack was "a British person with fair hair and of large stature".
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George Best 3981nutrimat So 'nutrimat', whatever that means; but you sound like a biohazard; Do you think having the best barristers and legal firms is advantageous? Y-N No! I stated...
Shields - who was wearing a beige t-shirt on the night of the attack - was forced to wear a white t-shirt for an identity parade.
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"The stone used in the attack was not even examined for fingerprints or other traces that it had come into contact with our client.
"Police have been trying to provide evidence for the prosecution that shows my client was behind the attack, but have entirely failed to do so."
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"A hotel porter told the trial Shields could not have been at the 5am crime scene as he saw him go to bed at 2am.
But despite the overwhelming evidence pointing to the youngster's innocence, the court convicted him of attempted liquidate while clearing him of aggravated hooliganism."
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Defence lawyer Oleg Antanasov, who will appeal, said: "My client is innocent. But even if he was guilty, this sentence is exaggerated.
"Last week this court sentenced a Bulgarian man who end and chopped up his girlfriend to just 13 years in prison. I've never heard of the court awarding more £35,000 damages. In 15 years I've never seen such a swift investigation and trial. They must have set a new record by completing it in two months."
-- "It is like a dream to be here. I am not here to learn English. I want to win. I want the the supporters to be proud of the team, the manager, the players and the club." - Rafael Ben'tez
