In brief: Bridgewater Appeal may take a month

The weight of evidence could stretch the Carl Bridgewater appeal hearing, due to begin at the Court of Appeal on Tuesday, to four weeks. The court will hear 60 grounds of appeal for James Robinson alone, said his solicitor, Jim Nichol, of Taylor Nichol. The key defence evidence is the forged confession that induced Patrick Molloy (deceased) to confess, but there are also many other grounds of appeal. Appellants Michael Hickey, Vincent Hickey, James Robinson and Patrick Molloy were convicted in November, 1979, of the murder of 13-year-old Staffordshire newspaper boy Carl Bridgewater, and will be represented by Edward Fitzgerald QC, Alun Jones QC, Patrick O'Connor QC and Michael Mansfield QC, respectively.