Release Brendan Lillis [See Mod Warning Post 415]

Wolfe Tone · 19-07-2011 08:45PM #1

The above video is of a recent speech by his partner, Roisin.

A basic summary; the man has been bedridden for over 600 days at this stage, he can't walk and can barely talk. He is down to five and a half stone. He is on a feeding tube also. His partner has been told by Doctors that he has only days to live. His condition is a form of severe arthritis which causes your spine to fuse, something to do with excess bone mass.

He was first jailed for life in the 1970s for possession of explosives and weapons, he served 16 years in the H-Blocks and was a blanket man for a period. He was released on license in the early nineties. In 2009 he was brought up in court on attempted robbery charges, his license was revoked after his arrest and he was returned to jail. He was subsequently deemed too ill for trial. Hence he is in jail now for an act perpetrated in the 70s.

The man is clearly no danger to society. In addition he is not receiving proper medical care in the prison hospital, for instance the infrequent visits by Doctors and physiotherapists are a major reason why his condition is so bad and he is nearing death.

This man should be released on humanitarian grounds. The SDLP and Sinn Féin have also called for him to be released on humanitarian grounds.

“Political arguments should be set aside in this case; our societal commitment to human rights should be our main concern. These rights should equally apply to prisoners.” - SDLP

Its a disgrace that this man, someone who poses no danger whatsoever, a very ill man, too ill to stand for trial, has had his license revoked while loyalist leaders on license have not, and are free to orchestrate mass sectarian attacks on nationalist areas, like Short Strand in Belfast.

In an attempt to highlight Brendan's plight his partner and a number of other people are planning a three day fast;

The partner of a Maghaberry inmate is to take part in a three-day hunger strike, over the conditions in which Brendan Lillis - who suffers from arthritic condition ankylosing spondylitis - is being held.

The 59-year-old has spent 600 days lying in a bed in Maghaberry's hospital.

The west Belfast man was charged in connection with an attempted tiger robbery in 2009 but, earlier this year, the authorities said he was too ill to stand trial.

However, because of a legal loophole, he is still in prison.

In the 1970s, he served a 17-year sentence on explosives charges but - because his licence was revoked when he was re-arrested two years ago - he is esentially in prison now for a crime he committed in 1976.

His partner, Roisin Allsopp, has been campaigning for his release.

"The charges against my partner were shelved last February," she told UTV.

"He is now coming to the end of his second year in jail. There are no charges against him at the minute.

"He is not a danger to anybody. If they wanted their pound of flesh, I can tell you, they've got it."

Roisin, along with former republican hunger strikers, will begin their protest on Thursday.

A preliminary hearing is being held by the Parole Commissioners to decide if Lillis should be released.

In a statement, the NI Prison Service said it - and its health care partner, the South Eastern Trust - had made "strenuous efforts to ensure Mr Lillis's full health care needs have been and are continuing to be met in a satisfactory manner".

The statement continued: "Given the current circumstances, there are not sufficient and exceptional grounds to justify his release on compassionate grounds."

The 3 day fast is starting at 12pm on Thursday the 21st at the site of the old Anderstown police station.

David Ford and the British secretary of state need to intervene and set this man free. David Ford is a disgrace of a Justice minister. The prison service is a disgrace, as are the prisons themselves, and a significant portion of their staff.

Why is he keeping this very ill man in jail for a decades old act?

Liam Byrne · 19-07-2011 08:50PM

Wolfe Tone wrote: »

Why is he keeping this very ill man in jail for a decades old act?

Oh, I dunno.....maybe because he hasn't served his sentence yet ?

Wolfe Tone · 19-07-2011 08:53PM

Liam Byrne wrote: »

Oh, I dunno.....maybe because he hasn't served his sentence yet ?

You must tell me your secrets Liam, how did you read all that, and watch an eight minute video in just 5 mins?

Seriously Liam, you know better than your post implies when it comes to republicans prisoners, and indeed life sentences in general. As I said, he was released.

The Waltzing Consumer · 19-07-2011 09:02PM

What happened to the victims of this attempted tiger kidnapping in 2009?

Where is their thread op?

Why should I care about any criminal who tries to kidnap families in order to rob banks/post offices?

Wolfe Tone · 19-07-2011 09:05PM

The Waltzing Consumer wrote: »

What happened to the victims of this attempted tiger kidnapping in 2009?

Where is their thread op?

Why should I care about any criminal who tries to kidnap families in order to rob banks/post offices?

Brendan Lillis is innocent when it comes to the tiger kidnapping. He is in jail for something from the seventies.

Perhaps if he is released, against all odds, he may recover sufficiently in order for him to appear in court in relation to that.

And why should you care? A sense of humanity and decency.

The Waltzing Consumer · 19-07-2011 09:13PM

Wolfe Tone wrote: »

Brendan Lillis is innocent when it comes to the tiger kidnapping. He is in jail for something from the seventies.

Perhaps if he is released, against all odds, he may recover sufficiently in order for him to appear in court in relation to that.

Yeah, he got his license revoked because of the charge and original sentence was reactivated. That's his own fault then.

If this was not some "republican" but some other scumbag from inner city dublin who had his sentence reactivated, this thread would not exist, people would be unanimous in their acceptance of justice.

So no words about the victims of this attempted tiger kidnapping? More interested in perpetrators of violent acts? What's the burden of proof or standards prosecution must meet to have a sentence reactivated? It is clearly legal or you would be saying it is illegal, so obviously they have some proof of wrongdoing or links to this tiger kidnapping. They cannot just reactivate a sentence for nothing.

JustinDee · 19-07-2011 09:18PM

It must be comforting to some to know that criminal offences seem to have an expiry date.

Liam Byrne · 19-07-2011 09:26PM

Wolfe Tone wrote: »

Seriously Liam, you know better than your post implies when it comes to republicans prisoners, and indeed life sentences in general. As I said, he was released.

Where did it say he was a republican prisoner ? I didn't see that anywhere in your post, and I was just commenting as I would on any criminal thug.

Wolfe Tone · 19-07-2011 09:26PM

The Waltzing Consumer wrote: »

Yeah, he got his license revoked because of the charge and original sentence was reactivated. That's his own fault then.

So, he is in jail because he was charged with something. Found guilty? No. How is that a fair precedent? Is everyone charged always guilty?

If this was not some "republican" but some other scumbag from inner city dublin who had his sentence reactivated, this thread would not exist, people would be unanimous in their acceptance of justice.

Not true. If I heard of a similar case with a very ill man in jail after having his license revoked over being charged with something then yes I would also make a thread over that.

So no words about the victims of this attempted tiger kidnapping? More interested in perpetrators of violent acts? What's the burden of proof or standards prosecution must meet to have a sentence reactivated? It is clearly legal or you would be saying it is illegal, so obviously they have some proof of wrongdoing or links to this tiger kidnapping. They cannot just reactivate a sentence for nothing.

The burden is the Secretary of State saying "put him back in jail". Thats it.

The FACTS are that we have a very ill, near death man in jail.

As he poses zero danger to society he should be released so his partner can be with him.

Wolfe Tone · 19-07-2011 09:27PM

Liam Byrne wrote: »

Where did it say he was a republican prisoner ? I didn't see that anywhere in your post, and I was just commenting as I would on any criminal thug.

Just as I thought, you didn't read what I wrote or listen to the video.

Liam Byrne · 19-07-2011 09:29PM

Wolfe Tone wrote: »

Just as I thought, you didn't read what I wrote or listen to the video.

I read what you wrote alright. There was no mention whatsoever of "republican".

Anyway, like I said, it's irrelevant to me and I only mentioned it because you made false claims in your second post.

Wolfe Tone · 19-07-2011 09:33PM

Liam Byrne wrote: »

I read what you wrote alright. There was no mention whatsoever of "republican".

Anyway, like I said, it's irrelevant to me and I only mentioned it because you made false claims in your second post.

Liam, do you need to be spoon fed?

I said he spent 16 years in the H-Blocks and was a blanket man. The UTV article says how former "republican hunger strikers" will be doing the three day fast.

You should listen to the video too.

Liam Byrne · 19-07-2011 09:37PM

Wolfe Tone wrote: »

Liam, do you need to be spoon fed?

I said he spent 16 years in the H-Blocks and was a blanket man. The UTV article says how former "republican hunger strikers" will be doing the three day fast.

As I said, nothing in your post or the other articles said that the guy was a "republican".

The fact that you posted demanding his release would have made me suspicious, since I haven't seen any thread by you defending / excusing anyone else's right-to-freedom-despite-their-crimes, but I had no proof.

Wolfe Tone · 19-07-2011 09:40PM

Liam Byrne wrote: »

As I said, nothing in your post or the other articles said that the guy was a "republican".

The fact that you posted demanding his release would have made me suspicious, since I haven't seen any thread by you defending / excusing anyone else's right-to-freedom-despite-their-crimes, but I had no proof.

So yes, you do need to be spoon fed. If you had have listened to the video, or even just read the bit of writing in the video, it would have been obvious, even if what was written below was not enough for you to work out the massive mystery of who this former blanket man, imprisoned in the 70s for having weapons, with republican hunger striker friends was.

:rolleyes::rolleyes:

Liam Byrne · 19-07-2011 09:43PM

Wolfe Tone wrote: »

So yes, you do need to be spoon fed. If you had have listened to the video, or even just read the bit of writing in the video, it would have been obvious, even if what was written below was not enough for you to work out the massive mystery of who this former blanket man, imprisoned in the 70s for having weapons, with republican hunger striker friends was.

:rolleyes::rolleyes:

As I said, I don't care who he is. If I had known that he was a "republican" then you would have claimed I was showing anti-republican bias.

The fact that I don't know and don't care means that I am treating all criminals with the same approach....they did the crime so they can damn well do the time.

Wolfe Tone · 19-07-2011 09:55PM

Liam Byrne wrote: »

As I said, I don't care who he is. If I had known that he was a "republican" then you would have claimed I was showing anti-republican bias.

The fact that I don't know and don't care means that I am treating all criminals with the same approach....they did the crime so they can damn well do the time.

He did... Hence why he was released back in the early nineties.

Lets pretend this is your garden variety "thug". Would you want this person, who is basically paralyzed, cant talk, is dangerously underweight, who doctors say only has days to live, to be released to be with his partner? Why keep him in jail to die?

Perhaps in future Liam you could read and take in all the material in the OP so we can have an informed discussion? Not too much to ask I hope.

Liam Byrne · 19-07-2011 10:05PM

Wolfe Tone wrote: »

He did... Hence why he was released back in the early nineties.

....on condition he didn't re-offend, right ?

Wolfe Tone wrote: »

Lets pretend this is your garden variety "thug".

No pretence required.

Wolfe Tone wrote: »

Would you want this person, who is basically paralyzed, cant talk, is dangerously underweight, who doctors say only has days to live, to be released to be with his partner? Why keep him in jail to die?

Because he made his choices.

Wolfe Tone wrote: »

Perhaps in future Liam you could read and take in all the material in the OP so we can have an informed discussion? Not too much to ask I hope.

Maybe if "all the material" wasn't blatant propaganda I would. The last time I asked for 100% facts in relation to who someone was, you went off on a biased pathos tangent of which the Sindo would have been proud.

Maybe if all your posts weren't demanding subversion of justice and release and better terms for thugs (although to be fair, you don't demand it for all thugs, just 50% of them).

Maybe if you were more interested in demanding stuff for people who hadn't tried to murder and maim Irish people ?

What health would those people be in if he'd had his way ?

Given his age and condition, I wonder if he's about the same age and health as those involved in Bloody Sunday ? Would you start a thread about them ?

I doubt it. And the only difference in that case would be that I would actually agree with you; murdering thugs should be in jail.

Wolfe Tone · 19-07-2011 10:19PM

Liam Byrne wrote: »

....on condition he didn't re-offend, right ?

Is the man not innocent until proven guilty?

Because he made his choices.

So you would let him die. I will remember that the next time you try to take the moral high ground. Disgusting.

You have a very naive, simplistic attitude to crime and those who do it by the way. "choices". :rolleyes:

Maybe if "all the material" wasn't blatant propaganda I would. The last time I asked for 100% facts in relation to who someone was, you went off on a biased pathos tangent of which the Sindo would have been proud.

Jesus Liam. A speech by the mans wife detailing his condition etc, and you put your fingers in your ears, "na na na na cant hear you, propaganda!!!" Very childish Liam, I thought someone your age would be better than that. I linked a SDLP and a SF press release, and a UTV article, thats pretty good going for a OP.

Maybe if all your posts weren't demanding subversion of justice and release and better terms for thugs (although to be fair, you don't demand it for all thugs, just 50% of them).

Your getting boring Liam!

Maybe if you were more interested in demanding stuff for people who hadn't tried to murder and maim Irish people ?

Yawn, Same old, hey, you voted to release loads of them from jail

You have done more for them than I ever have.

What health would those people be in if he'd had his way ?

How does it matter? Does everyone not have the same rights regardless of what they think or do? Are they not still human?

Given his age and condition, I wonder if he's about the same age and health as those involved in Bloody Sunday ? Would you start a thread about them ?

Now that you mention it I was planning to make a thread calling for a general amnesty for all those involved in things like that, so the truth can come out. That was brought on by the news today that the last parent of a Bloody Sunday victim died, the only one alive to see the Saville report published. Its a disgrace he was the only parent to see his 17 year old son vindicated and his unlawful murder and innocence acknowledged. Everyone needs the truth now, before it is too late.

anymore · 19-07-2011 10:59PM

" In 2009 he was brought up in court on attempted robbery charges, "
Could you clarify, was he trying to rob somebody ?

Wolfe Tone · 19-07-2011 11:06PM

anymore wrote: »

" In 2009 he was brought up in court on attempted robbery charges, "
Could you clarify, was he trying to rob somebody ?

It was a pretty horrible thing really, he was accused of being in a gang which planned a tiger kidnapping of a family... The ringleader was the boyfriend(of 2 years!) of the daughter from said family.

What was his alleged involvement? I don't know, his illness was very bad at that time too.

But, its important to remember he has not been found guilty of anything in relation to that. Charges have been shelved.

But still, I feel thats pretty irrelevant, thats not why he is in jail anyway, and even if it was I still think he should be allowed to go home to his wife and better medical care where, maybe, he could recover, or, more likely it seems, die at home with some dignity.

Soldie · 19-07-2011 11:43PM

I'm starting to warm to that Northern Ireland sub-forum idea. As soon as the number of Northern Ireland threads on the first page of the forum drops below ~3, there's someone at the ready to bore us all to tears with yet another thread on one of the conflict's innumerable minutiae.

Wolfe Tone · 19-07-2011 11:47PM

Soldie wrote: »

I'm starting to warm to that Northern Ireland sub-forum idea. As soon as the number of Northern Ireland threads on the first page of the forum drops below ~3, there's someone at the ready to bore us all to tears with yet another thread on one of the conflict's innumerable minutiae.

Please accept my sincere apologies for kicking in your door, holding a gun to your head, and forcing you to read this thread.

19-07-2011 11:54PM

Wolfe Tone wrote: »

Please accept my sincere apologies for kicking in your door, holding a gun to your head, and forcing you to read this thread.

Sounds like something your mate Lillis would do while out on license

Liam Byrne · 20-07-2011 12:19AM

Fr Tod Umptious wrote: »

Wolfe Tone wrote: »

Please accept my sincere apologies for kicking in your door, holding a gun to your head, and forcing you to read this thread.

Sounds like something your mate Lillis would do while out on license

Now now.....Wolfe Tone only wants the man to be able to die with dignity....

Let's ignore the fact that this was a privilege the same "man" refused to afford to his intended victims.

Live by the sword, die by the sword.

At least the fate of the subject of the thread is related to his choices, unlike those who simply chose to go shopping or whatever his intended target was.

Yitzhak Rabin · 20-07-2011 12:27AM

I got mixed up when I saw the title and thought this was a thread calling for Eamon Lillis to be freed! :pac:

Wolfe Tone · 20-07-2011 12:29AM

Fr Tod Umptious wrote: »

Sounds like something your mate Lillis would do while out on license

Considering he cant walk and is nearly dead, I doubt it.

Liam Byrne · 20-07-2011 12:37AM

yekahS wrote: »

I got mixed up when I saw the title and thought this was a thread calling for Eamon Lillis to be freed! :pac:

Good point - the thread title should be phrased as a question open for discussion rather than a propaganda soapbox.

pokerface_me · 20-07-2011 12:47AM

Disgusting comments Liam Byrne. Every man woman and child has the right to proper medical care. This guy is in prison for a crime committed in the 70's. If charges have been shelfed he should not be in prison as he hasn't been convicted of any crime while out on licence.

Innocent till proven guilty

Liam Byrne · 20-07-2011 12:53AM

pokerface_me wrote: »

Disgusting comments Liam Byrne. Every man woman and child has the right to proper medical care. This guy is in prison for a crime committed in the 70's. If charges have been shelfed he should not be in prison as he hasn't been convicted of any crime while out on licence.

Innocent till proven guilty

Nothing disgusting whatsoever. See highlighted part of your own post.

Wolfe Tone · 20-07-2011 01:05AM

Liam Byrne wrote: »

Nothing disgusting whatsoever. See highlighted part of your own post.

But he served his time and was released near 20 years ago.

He served his time. You however voted to have lots of paramilitaries let out early.

Liam Byrne · 20-07-2011 01:17AM

But he served his time and was released near 20 years ago.

He served his time. You however voted to have lots of paramilitaries let out early.

Unfortunately it was presented as a necessary evil to stop innocent people getting murdered.

Definitely wouldn't have chosen to do it for no reason; they made their choices.

How many people will releasing this would-be murderer save ?

Release Brendan Lillis [See Mod Warning Post 415]

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