Apology to the club

[i kne albert davy]

How true is this.

I went to court for a speeding offence donkeys years ago and thought I would defend myself. By the time the prosecuting solicitor had finished summing up, they'd even convinced me how terrible my offence was!

Feck me how fast were you going I only got half a day at fake Utd of Manchester for a naughty boys course.

 

[Chippy_boy]

Feck me how fast were you going I only got half a day at fake Utd of Manchester for a naughty boys course.

52 in a 30. I'd be following a twat doing like 20 mph in a 30 for about 2 miles and as soon as an open stretch of road appeared, I went past him only for the moron to put his foot down. So I floored it right at the moment the plod was standing there, speed gun in hand. I wasn't required to go to court at the time but I was a travelling rep and already had 6 points, so didn't fancy getting another 3 or even 6 and getting a ban, so thought I would try to contest it. Wish I hadn't!

 

[Corky]

Staying off topic briefly, it's hard to remember that Phil was 11 for the Aguero moment, and was going to "see nothing like it ever again" until that moment, when he's part of it, little wonder he didn't know what to do.

As for @meldrew moment of madness and all that, but there was some sound advice here before you got to court, you should have taken some of it. I'm sorry it's turned out bad for you but ignore the gutter press comments, they were gone moments after they were printed and are irrelevant to you. You and your family know the reality, that is all that matters, you'll have to suck it up sadly, and the club could well go worse on you ban wise, I hope they don't.

Far more bad and complete bullshit advice on here before and after to be fair. It would be hard to pick out anything sound.

 

[cleavers]

Far more bad and complete bullshit advice on here before and after to be fair. It would be hard to pick out anything sound.

I was talking about the "contact the FSA" for advice, they have people who would advise, it may not have helped obviously, but it couldn't have done any harm, nor would using a duty solicitor either.

Neither would have made the punishment worse anyway.

 

[Keith Moon]

Villa cheat Robin Olsen told the Swedish media today that he's really happy that you got a a four-year ban, he said that it's good for English football".

 

[Corky]

I was talking about the "contact the FSA" for advice, they have people who would advise, it may not have helped obviously, but it couldn't have done any harm, nor would using a duty solicitor either.

Neither would have made the punishment worse anyway.

True - some where advising him to take a video into court as exhibit A, showing what other people did.

 

[Academica]

What's happened with this, any further updates? Seen loads after the match holding flares/smokebombs on the pitch, surely they're not gonna go after everyone.

You a little bit worried?

 

[Pingu the Penguin]

Whatever the rights and wrongs of actually going on the pitch, that's a judgement that would make me question the magistrates' ability to assess the seriousness and impact of offences.

Anyone pleading guilty has the right to expect competence from those who sit in judgement. Did they actually watch the video?

I know a wee bit about this stuff for reasons I wont go into. Having plead guilty unrepresented the bench just hear the jaundiced version of the prosecution in terms of the events, so it’s unsurprising they consider the worst as that’s basically all they have heard.

Generally football banning orders are a natural consequence of the act of committing of the offence.

The sentencing guidelines say:

“The court MUST (emphasis added) make a football banning order where an offender has been convicted of a relevant offence AND (my emphasis) it is satisfied that there are reasonable grounds to believe that making a banning order would help to prevent violence or disorder (Football Spectators Act 1989, s.14A). If the court is not so satisfied, it must state that fact and give its reasons.”

Properly advised and represented the OP might (depending on the bench) have been able to successfully argue that there wasn’t a realistic prospect of further disorder from them in the future.

Alas, that didn’t happen but fair play OP for facing up to something

 

[Keke Rosberg]

@meldrew If there’s a chance to appeal then it’s worth considering. Even if your ban is only half reduced that would be massive.
Obviously it would cost, but I’d donate a tenner if a legit fund me page was done properly (sanctioned via Ric as trustworthy etc)
Yes you made a mistake not getting represented, yes there was some good advice on here but hey you’re allowed to fuck up with all the stress you’ve been through.

 

[meldrew]

How would I go about setting up a go fund me page to go through with the appeal and clearing my name.

If truth be told I just want my name clearing and getting the facts out there and not the lies being spread.

Its getting beyond a joke now.

 

[dickie davies]

How would I go about setting up a go fund me page to go through with the appeal and clearing my name.

If truth be told I just want my name clearing and getting the facts out there and not the lies being spread.

Its getting beyond a joke now.

You're not going to clear your name as you pleaded guilty
If you appeal successfully you will only reduce the ban by 12 months and City may well yet impose their own longer ban on you
At that moment you were stupid and even more so when you declined the offer of free legal representation
And I can't believe you're going to brag about this story to your future grandchildren

 

[RobertVentura]

Did Olsen actually get attacked or was he just caught in the crossfire? Villa released a statement that seemed to say it was accidental, a fan ran past him with his arms spread out and just caught him in the back of the head.

Yeah, it was chaos out there, many running everywhere - and bumped into others in the process. Olsen took it as an attack on him. BS. Unfortunate, yes. But he wasn't outright attacked.

 

[117 M34]

How would I go about setting up a go fund me page to go through with the appeal and clearing my name.

If truth be told I just want my name clearing and getting the facts out there and not the lies being spread.

Its getting beyond a joke now.

How can you clear you name when you pleaded guilty?
You could only (potentially) appeal to have the ban reduced.
The BBC aren't going to write a retract piece about thier article.

 

[meldrew]

I don't mean clear my name, I accept the ban although excessive.

It's the stories being published saying I'm the one who's attacked the player. Also the lies in court from the prosecution saying I taunted the players and fans.

 

[Gingers Dad]

They did, however I just wanted to state my own case and give them honesty. Never having to do anything like this previously I went in blind.

Foolish now looking back in hindsight but you live and learn.

Don't beat yourself up about not getting a solicitor. Having watched your celebration on the Villa fans video you were probably getting that ban anyway. Magistrates could have sent it in the post, saved you wasting your day.

 

[tolmie's hairdoo]

If only our club gave a fuck and tried to help fans instead of just plain ignoring them.

Quite happy knowingly selecting someone being investigated for rape, however.

 

[stevemacca]

How true is this.

I went to court for a speeding offence donkeys years ago and thought I would defend myself. By the time the prosecuting solicitor had finished summing up, they'd even convinced me how terrible my offence was!

Same here - I was done for jumping a red light and defended myself in court, I looked at the prosecuting solicitor who looked about 9 years old and thought - 'well, she can't do any harm!'
Fuck me , by the time she finished I didn't know whether I was riding a bus or a bike, which way I was going or how fast or whether there was a traffic light there or not. She had me saying all sorts of things I had no intention of saying... I wanted to cry......

GUILTY

 

[Jazzyblue]

How would I go about setting up a go fund me page to go through with the appeal and clearing my name.

If truth be told I just want my name clearing and getting the facts out there and not the lies being spread.

Its getting beyond a joke now.

The ‘right to be forgotten’ may apply in time in your case but it won’t be while the ban is active. As far as the law is concerned the articles are just reports of proceedings in open court, and it’s in the public interest for them to be out there.

Difficult to see how an appeal against conviction can succeed on a guilty plea as others have said, though best case scenario you might get the ban reduced.

In truth most will have forgotten your name before they’ve finished reading the piece, and those that do remember it will only see you as a giddy fan.

Best of luck with whatever you decide, I believe there are solicitors who specialise in football banning orders, they might give you some initial advice on your options and help you draw a line under it.

 

[Invisible Man's Bandage]

I don't mean clear my name, I accept the ban although excessive.

It's the stories being published saying I'm the one who's attacked the player. Also the lies in court from the prosecution saying I taunted the players and fans.

The most you could reduce the ban is by one year as three years is the minimum for a court imposed banning order. It is highly unlikely that this would be the outcome and you still don't know if the club will impose a separate, longer ban either.

You made a huge error of judgement in a climate that has seen various incidents of pitch invasions/disorder over recent weeks and to be honest the penalties imposed don't seem excessive to me. It's very raw for you right now but the best thing is to accept that these are the consequences of your actions and move on. You haven't received a custodial sentence, lost your job, home, family or anything like that. Pay the fine and hope that the club don't give you an even longer ban. Getting support on BM has probably given you a false perspective of your actions. Many on here think what you did doesn't even warrant any punishment but that isn't the view of the club or the authorities.

 

[Tim of the Oak]

I wonder how many Blues have got their mates banned by invading the pitch after getting match tickets from friends?