Michael Shields

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Charge:	Attempted Murder
Sentence:	10 yrs
Years Imprisoned:	4
Year Crime:	2005
Year Convicted:	2005
Year Cleared:	2009
U.S. State or Country of Crime:	Bulgaria
County or Region of Crime:
City of Crime:
Result:	Pardoned
Summary of Case:	"Michael Shields was wrongly convicted of attempted murder for allegedly throwing a brick on May 30, 2005 that struck a bartender in the head while on vacation in Bulgaria for a soccer game between Liverpool and Turkey. Michael Shields' conviction was based on his identification by the victim. Shields was sentenced to 15 years in prison. On appeal his sentence was reduced to 10 years. Another Englishman who was in Bulgaria for the soccer gam, Graham Sankey, confessed in writing to the crime. However, the Bulgarian courts refused to grant Shields a new trial because Sankey refused to travel to Bulgaria to be testify. Shields was later transferred to England to serve his prison sentence. On September 9, 2009 Shields was granted a full Royal Pardon based on what Justice Secretary Jack Straw described as "new evidence" of Shield's "moral and technical innocence." The new evidence was two new witnesses who claimed Sankey confessed to the crime. England asserted the right to pardon Shields because he was in their physical custody. Shields was imprisoned for four years."
Conviction Caused By:	Michael Shields' conviction was based on his identification by the victim.
Innocence Proved By:	"On September 9, 2009 Shields was granted a full Royal Pardon based on what Justice Secretary Jack Straw described as "new evidence" of Shield's "moral and technical innocence.""
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Compensation Awarded:
Was Perpetrator Identified?	Yes
Age When Imprisoned:	18
Age When Released:	22
Sex:	Male
Skin/Ethnicity:	White
Information Source 1:	"Liverpool welcome release of jailed Reds' fan Michael Shields as he walks free after royal pardon, By Sportsmail Reporter, Daily Mail (London, UK), September 9, 2009"
Information Location 1:	http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-1212197/Liverpool-welcome-release-jailed-Reds-fan-Michael-Shields-walks-free-royal-pardon.html
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Book About Case:	Michael Shields: My Story (2009)
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Michael Shields

Charge:

Attempted Murder

Sentence:

10 yrs

Years Imprisoned:

4

Year Crime:

2005

Year Convicted:

2005

Year Cleared:

2009

U.S. State or Country of Crime:

Bulgaria

County or Region of Crime:

City of Crime:

Result:

Pardoned

Summary of Case:

Conviction Caused By:

Michael Shields' conviction was based on his identification by the victim.

Innocence Proved By:

"On September 9, 2009 Shields was granted a full Royal Pardon based on what Justice Secretary Jack Straw described as "new evidence" of Shield's "moral and technical innocence.""

Defendant Aided By:

Compensation Awarded:

Was Perpetrator Identified?

Yes

Age When Imprisoned:

18

Age When Released:

22

Sex:

Male

Skin/Ethnicity:

White

Information Source 1:

"Liverpool welcome release of jailed Reds' fan Michael Shields as he walks free after royal pardon, By Sportsmail Reporter, Daily Mail (London, UK), September 9, 2009"

Information Location 1:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-1212197/Liverpool-welcome-release-jailed-Reds-fan-Michael-Shields-walks-free-royal-pardon.html

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Book About Case:

Michael Shields: My Story (2009)

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Book About Case (2):

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Movie About Case:

Comments About Case: