Out, damned SOC! Out I say! When will Ambridge be free? Discuss The Archers here

[PseudoBadger]

A once-great soap is going down the Beverley drain.

Why would Caroline assume that Anna has stacks of evidence purely because she's being paid? It isn't even her job to find it, and if it was, she can only find what is there - i.e. evidence from witnesses like Shula.

One of Shula's main problems if she were to give evidence about this is that any prosecutor with half a brain would ask how why her conscience didn't smite her when it comes to avenging the hunt sab who was Knob's actual victim, but only when she wanted to help her cousin.

Is this going to be SOC's final insult - Hellin gets off only for St Smugula to end up behind bars for telling the truth?

Judging from this article it doesn't look as if Shula could be prosecuted for perverting the course of justice. It would be nice to think she might have the sense to go and ask a lawyer about it.

All will be forgiven if Smugula goes to prison!

It would be nice to think she might have the sense to go and ask a lawyer about it.

What, like the way everyone else in the whole of Ambridge has taken the sensible option and checked what might happen with experts and spoken up when they have some pertinent knowledge through this whole storyline?

Yes, it would be nice...

If only there was a solicitor in village that Shula has known for years that she could have a friendly word with....oh, hang on.

No selsig Shula and Usha are not at all on friendly terms due to Shula having an affair with Richard Locke when Usha and Richard were together.

I know, Jessie, it was a joke. See also Shula being all "I'm not racist but" over Alan marrying a brown person who isn't C of E.

Hello all - I've just started listening again...cautiously. I stopped partly because RL got in the way for a while but also because it was patent nonsense. It seems to have got better with characters behaving more like themselves and finally remembering Knob's knobishness??

Shula said she lied about the sab incident to protect Hellin, but I thought she lied to protect the hunt.

redshoe, wasn't it both? I think that was how she justified it to herself in the first place. I remember Rob being extremely menacing towards her, he did actually bully her, which should support Helen's case (if anyone were actually making a case for her).

I think you're right dumdedum

As a legal listener but not a criminal law expert, the CPS would have discretion whether to prosecute and there might not be a minimum custodial sentence : Shula might not even be charged with the offence (and I suspect quite a lot of that sort of thing goes on) or she might be charged and not go to prison. But it would be very embarrassing all the same, as it might come out if Rob is ever charged and tried for an offense against Helen or even in this trial.

Thanks, Cecile. If Shula were to go to Anna rather than the police first, would Anna be obliged to shop Shula?

Interesting question. I'm a solicitor, not a barrister, but I don't think there is a specific obligation for her to go to the police and report what she has heard. However, if Shula gives evidence under oath which differs from a statement she has given to the police, that might have its own repercussions, and that would be the only way she could really reliably get the evidence in, if you see what I mean. Honestly, you really need a criminal barrister or a criminal evidence expert of which I am neither. Although Anna is doing the solicitor's job now anyway!

The gist of Shula's confession, if she makes one, would be that she witnessed Rob being violent and that he terrified her into keeping quiet about it.
I would have thought that she would get off lightly in the circs though it would be an interesting twist if she goes to prison and her testimony helps to get Helen out.

Sorry - I think I'm being a pain, but I thought she didn't keep quiet, I thought she made a statement to the police though it was so long ago I bet the sw's don't know

She did make a statement to the police, but I can't remember the details. Lowfield would have it.

There's this!

IIRC she said she didn't see the actual incident but her testifying that she was intimidated by Rob backs up what Anna will be saying in Helen's defence. (She doesn't have to say that she was actually more frightened of Helen's reaction if she had shopped him which is probably nearer to the truth.)

Thanks Mootsie so I'm not going mad

wouldn't it go down as intimidating a witness though, ie rob intimidating shula?

It depends what you mean by "go down as".

I don't think we are being fair to True Shula here though, are we? I thought we agreed that True Shula would not have lied about this in the first place. Like in Invasion of the Body Snatchers, this must have been the moment that Pod Shula took the place of True Shula.

Well eventually Jill will find out what's wrong and make Shula talk to Anna. And if Alstair (who was very obviously only thinking of himself) think Shula would end up in Prison then what does he think would happen to Rob? Surely GBH or whatever is worse than lying to the police?