04/01/2011

Cyfiawnder i Gary Critchley: prynwch grys-t Cymraeg i gefnogi!

" The most blatant miscarriage of justice in Britain." - Private Eye

Yn 198o, aeth gŵr ifanc o Birmingham i aros mewn sgwat ar 4ydd llawr Campbell Buildings, Llundain, efo ffrind am bythefnos. Ar y 10ed diwrnod o'r pythefnos hwnnw, darganfuwyd Gary yn gorwedd wedi brifo'n ddifrifol ar y pafin, 50 troedfedd islaw ffenest y sgwat.

Roedd Gary wedi torri asgwrn ei gefn, ei figwrn a'i arddwrn, ac mi ganfuwyd yn ddiweddarach ei fod wedi dioddef difrod i'w ymennydd efo ergyd galed i ganol ei dalcen efo morthwyl. Roedd o hefyd yn dioddef o hypothermia.

Pan ymchwiliodd yr heddlu i'r achos, cafwyd hyd i gorff gŵr o'r enw Edward McNeill yn y sgwat ar y pedwerydd llawr. Roedd o wedi ei guro i farwolaeth efo morthwyl - wedi ei daro bron i 30 o weithiau - ac roedd yr ystafell yn waed i gyd. Gwaed Mr McNeill oedd y rhan fwyaf ohono, a gwaed Gary Crithcley oedd rhywfaint. Cafwyd peth o waed Gary, hefyd, ar declyn cloi olwyn lywio car yn y sgwat.

Cafwyd hyd i forthwyl gwaedlyd yn y sgwat, a chadarnhawyd mai hwnnw oedd yr arf a ddefnyddiwyd i guro Mr McNeill i farwolaeth. Doedd arno ddim olion bysedd nac unrhyw olion fforensig arall i'w gysylltu â Gary Critchley. Mewn bwndel o ddillad sbar yn perthyn i drigolion y sgwat, cafwyd hyd i olion gwaed Mr McNeill a Gary ar bar o jîns, ac olion gwaed Gary yn unig ar grys-T.

Er fod gwaed Mr McNeill wedi ei wasgaru dros yr ystafell i gyd - wedi iddo waedu cymaint nes bod ei gorff yn wag o waed - ni chafwyd hyd i un diferyn ohono ar ddillad Gary nac ar ei gorff pan gafwyd hyd iddo yn anymwybodol ar y stryd 50 troedfedd islaw.

Wedi ei gyhuddo a'i ryddhau ar fechniaeth, dychwelodd Gary i Birmingham ar faglau. Yn mis Mai 1981, er gwaethaf diffyg tystiolaeth fforensig, dyfarnwyd Gary Critchley yn euog o lofruddio Mr McNeill, a cafodd ei ddedfrydu i gael ei garcharu 'at Her Majesty's Pleasure' (y fersiwn troseddwr ifanc o garchariad am oes).

Argymhellodd yr Arglwydd Ganghellor ar y pryd na ddylai Gary Critchley dreulio mwy na 8-9 mlynedd yn y carchar. Mae Gary bellach wedi treulio 30 mlynedd dan glo.

Mae manylion yr achos, yn ogystal ag hanes ei ymdrechion i brofi ei ddieuogrwydd i'w gweld yma. Yn ogystal, mae'r datblygiadau diweddaraf yn yr ymgyrch i'w ryddhau, gan gynnwys cefnogaeth gan enwogion amlwg fel UB40 i'w cael ar y dudalen yma.

Mae teulu a ffrindiau Gary Critchley wedi bod wrthi ers amser yn ymgyrchu i glirio ei enw ac i'w gael allan o'r carchar ac adref at ei annwyliaid. Mae nifer o newyddiadurwyr ac enwogion megis UB40, a nifer o Aelodau Seneddol hefyd, bellach yn cefnogi'r ymgyrch. Yn ddiweddar, penderfynwyd lledaenu cyhoeddusrwydd am yr achos i wledydd eraill trwy atgynhyrchu crysau-T yr ymgyrch mewn ieithoedd eraill. Y Gymraeg yw'r iaith gyntaf a ddewiswyd, diolch i gysylltiadau teuluol rhwng rhai o gefnogwyr Gary â Chymru. Fi wnaeth y cyfieithu (tra'n cadw'r dyfyniad cryf gan Private Eye yn Saesneg, rhag ofn colli effaith), ac mi fyddaf i hefyd yn un o'r rhai fydd yn gyfrifol am ei werthu. Erfyniaf arnoch, felly, i gefnogi'r achos dyngarol hwn trwy gyfrannu £8 (+£1.50 p&p) i brynu un o'r crysau arbennig hyn. Dim ond nifer bychan sydd wedi eu cynhyrchu yn y Gymraeg, felly bachwch y cyfle i gael gafael ar eitem brin iawn, a chefnogi achos gwerth chweil wrth wneud. Mae dewis o ddu neu wyn, ac maent ar gael yn y meintiau canlynol: S, M, L ac XL, yn ogystal â lady fit S, M ac L (gweler y llun).

Gallwch dalu trwy Paypal (rhowch dewiprysor[at]btinternet[dot]com yn y llinell payee), neu fe allwch yrru siec yn daladwy i Gary Critchley Campaign ataf i yma yn Llan Ffestiniog. Ebostiwch y cyfeiriad uchod am fy nghyfeiriad. Diolch yn fawr iawn. Dyma rai o'r tyllau amlwg niferus yn yr achos yn erbyn Gary (wedi eu codi'n uniongyrchol o'r wefan:

Just some of the many discrepancies include:

1. The prosecutor said that the hammer blow to Gary’s own head- which caused him serious frontal lobe damage – must have been made by Gary himself, in a frenzy, as he carried out the savage attack on Mr McNeill. For that to be correct, however, Gary’s injury, would have been caused by the claw end of the hammer – but his injury was the same as Mr. McNeill’s, consistent with the round end of the hammer.

2. The only forensic evidence linking Gary to the attack was an undone training shoe – two to three sizes too small for him – jammed onto Gary’s left foot, when found on the floor beneath the squat. On his other foot was one of his own laced-up boots which witnesses said he had been wearing that day. Footprints “exactly similar” to the print on the sole of the trainer were found in the flat, which the prosecutor argued showed Gary was in the room after McNeill was attacked and probably killed.

There was no blood on the sole of the boot and no boot print in the flat. There was no sign of his other boot. The prosecution’s argument was that ‘punks wore odd clothes like that’ – even if it was far too small for his foot

3. Prosecutors relied on the fact that Gary had told police he did not remember going to the squat with Mr.McNeill, but then in a letter to friends written during his three months in hospital, (with memories recalled through conversations with visitors to him in hospital), he said he must have taken Mr. McNeill home and got drunk, and remembered opening the door and being struck. They said that Gary’s claims of amnesia were bogus, despite frontal lobe damage causing gaps in memory.

4. The prosecution also made a feature of ‘the fact’ that that no-one else would have known how to have latched and unlatched the door of the squat. Contemporary writings and memoirs state that hundreds of people who’d used or visited the squats knew how to do this

5. How could Gary have bludgeoned a man almost 30 times, (to the extent that Mr. McNeill’s body, when found, was drained of blood,) and been found with NOT ONE drop of that blood on him, tho he was covered in his own?

Gary had one appeal, in 1982, but it was ruled that there was no new evidence (a requirement of an appeal hearing) with which to question the conviction.

1 comment:

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