In the very near future members of the Bulgarian judiciary are set to meet to discuss new evidence which has come to light in the Michael Shields case.
With this in mind, it is crucially important that we continue to put pressure on the Bulgarian authorities to right the wrong that has been done in Michael's case.
If the outcome of the meeting goes Michael's way, it could result in him being pardoned or the case being reopened.
Everyone who has bothered to examine the evidence upon which Michael was convicted knows it is totally unsafe and those of us who are closer to the case are able to say without fear of being proven wrong that the Liverpool fan is not guilty.
Obviously, this miscarriage of justice needs to be put right, both for Michael and the victim, Martin Georgiev, who could so easily have been killed when he was attacked in the Sunny Beach resort in Bulgaria in the aftermath of Liverpool's Champions League win in Istanbul.

A petition has been set up calling on Gordon Brown to put pressure on the Bulgarian authorities to reopen the case so if you haven't signed it now is the time to do so.
The petition states:
We the undersigned petition the Prime Minister to recognise the deep concerns people have about the safety of the conviction of Michael Shields for a crime committed in Bulgaria.
We call on the Prime Minister and his Government to do all they can to assist in persuading the Bulgarian Government to re-open the case and for them to look at new and existing evidence.
Further the Prime Minister is called upon to ask the Bulgarian Authorities through Interpol to ask for further investigations to be carried out by Merseyside Police by interviewing those
who have provided new and additional information supporting Michael Shields claim to be innocent of the assault on Bulgarian waiter Martin Georgiev.
Michael Shields was convicted of a crime he claims he did not commit. Evidence was not allowed to be heard in the Bulgarian Court which included evidence from people who confirmed that Michael was indeed in his bed.
Other evidence was not allowed during an appeal because it was deemed to be too late,because it was not heard in the original trial.
This evidence and that of new witnesses needs to be taken into account.
Michael Shields is now in a UK Prison and has served nearly two years in May 2007 for a crime someone else has owned up to.
This Government should do all it possibly can to persuade the Bulgarians to re-open this case and examine thoroughly all the evidence that exists.

To sign the petition, just cut and paste the following link and you will be redirected to the relevant website:
http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/MichaelCShields

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