Nial mason 6 months suspended prison sentence!!!!

[RoversAlias]

Not condoning any of Mason’s actions, but it strikes me as odd that the girl was subjected to 2 unwanted approaches and didn’t move away from Mason, slap him or report him to the door staff.

Should she have to?

No, of course not.

But if I was receiving unwanted attention I would do something about it to stop it happening and I imagine most other people would too.

Very easy to say that isn't it, hypothetically and as a man. Until you are in that situation, I don't think you can say either way what you would or wouldn't do and you certainly can't cast aspersions on what others would do.

She didn't just sit there either, according to the account of what happened she repeatedly told him to stop and told him no. He physically accosted her by grabbing her head and sexually assaulted her by putting his hands under her clothes more than once.

I am frankly appalled by some of the things I've read on here regarding this. If it was anyone else other than a prominent Rovers player I don't think a lot of these justifications would be being said. Or at least I hope not.

[The Red Baron]

   Okay IDM I gave this scenario earlier...If your were approaching the trial date and your Barrister sat you down and said in his opinion it was a 50/50 case..If found Guilty it would be a minimum of 10 years but if you plead guilty it would be 3 and out in 16 months..What would you do?????

   I think its one of those situations were it's easy to sit here and say you would fight it but in the cold light of day it would take a lot of thinking about...

I would have thought any defence barrister worth his or her salt would only advise you to plead guilty if the weight of evidence against you was very strong.

[karlos]

can't believe some supporters on here SOME supporters quotes on here are the prime reasons some victims don't report offences against them. As a ex prison officer i have worked with many sex offenders including the major names and have got to know how these predators work infact they try to make the victom think they are the guilty party when quite categorically they are not. so all i can say is please be careful with your words a person is not guilty untill being proven so and in this case he has. THERE IS MORE TO LIFE THAN FOOTBALL.

[the vicar]

Sounds like absolute b*llocks from his dad. You can't plead guilty and therefore avoid a trial and then moan about the full facts not being considered at a trial...

Toxic behaviour all round.

but you can it has happened a lot of times

[ChrisBx]

Sounds like absolute b*llocks from his dad. You can't plead guilty and therefore avoid a trial and then moan about the full facts not being considered at a trial...

Toxic behaviour all round.

but you can it has happened a lot of times

Of course, you can try it. It's absolute nonsense though.

[wing commander]

   Okay IDM I gave this scenario earlier...If your were approaching the trial date and your Barrister sat you down and said in his opinion it was a 50/50 case..If found Guilty it would be a minimum of 10 years but if you plead guilty it would be 3 and out in 16 months..What would you do?????

   I think its one of those situations were it's easy to sit here and say you would fight it but in the cold light of day it would take a lot of thinking about...

I would have thought any defence barrister worth his or her salt would only advise you to plead guilty if the weight of evidence against you was very strong.

   Anybody who has had face to face talks with a queens Barrister will tell you different..They tend to tell you the worst possible outcome so you are prepared for it,if there is any semblance that you could get found guilty they tend to push you to the side of caution...Trust me I know,i've sat in front of one who reckoned I had a 70% chance of winning my case who still thought I should take a plea...

   As it happened her majesty's revenue and customs dropped the case in the end before the court date but it certainly opened my eyes to the British Justice system..

[One_Matty_Lucas]

Lets stop putting the blame on the victim (should have walked away, slapped him etc.)

Mason should have walked away as soon as she rejected his advances. Absolutely no excuses.

[sedwardsdrfc]

Lets stop putting the blame on the victim (should have walked away, slapped him etc.)

Mason should have walked away as soon as she rejected his advances. Absolutely no excuses.

Yep and its completely normal in these situations to freeze up, victims in countless cases describe that.

[Copps is Magic]

Completely agree. It is completely normal to 'freeze up' or not react in those situations - in fact, it's what the vast majority would do. Why would anyone want to blurt out that they've just been sexually assaulted.

In the sector I work in (academia) I've heard a few stories from my colleagues (both women and men) of similar situations happening to them. Being 'felt up' by senior academics at conferences and in the workplace and the like. And in all cases I've heard, the reaction was no reaction - in other words it took them a lot of time to 'compute' what is happening because you simply do not expect it to happen in the first place.

This girl actually sounded like she had her head fully screwed on, first reported it to the establishment and later than night the police.

[Chris Black come back]

Not sure the “no comment” line from the club is doing us any favours either. I see Radio Sheffield has picked this up now and our silence is speaking volumes. It is no doubt a difficult situation with legal hoops to jump through but we need to sort this out quickly otherwise we look (unfairly) like we are defending the indefensible.

[IDM]

CBCB the club has made a comment on the DROS - to the effect that this has happened and they are not commenting further at the moment.

I believe that was posted on there last night.

As SM says, the club will now be looking at what the net steps are but I for one am happy for that to be behind closed doors, but to say there has been no comment is wrong..

[ChrisBx]

Not sure the “no comment” line from the club is doing us any favours either. I see Radio Sheffield has picked this up now and our silence is speaking volumes. It is no doubt a difficult situation with legal hoops to jump through but we need to sort this out quickly otherwise we look (unfairly) like we are defending the indefensible.

Agreed. I appreciate the club believed Mason would enter a not guilty plea, but surely there was some contingency planning in case he either entered a guilty plea or was found guilty after a trial?

[Chris Black come back]

My point was that we have given a narrative but no action. There is now another cycle of coverage and we are saying nothing about action - and given we now know the outcome we are going to be expected to have a view. I am not saying this is easy just that coverage will intensify and we cannot keep saying considering all options as to most folk this sounds shorthand for doing nothing.

[IDM]

Which bit of “the club will consider its options, and will be making no further comment” isn’t good enough as an initial statement.

We don’t need a blow by blow commentary of what they are doing.

[karlos]

I can understand the club having to consider legal ratification but when the player has told the club he is not guilty and then change is plea to guilty that for me says the club should at least suspend the player pending a investigation. Keeping quiet and doing nothing is sometimes the worst thing the club could do.

[silent majority]

My point was that we have given a narrative but no action. There is now another cycle of coverage and we are saying nothing about action - and given we now know the outcome we are going to be expected to have a view. I am not saying this is easy just that coverage will intensify and we cannot keep saying considering all options as to most folk this sounds shorthand for doing nothing.

How do you know there's no action?

The club haven't said they are considering all options, they have said they are considering their options, a subtle difference. And, again, I'll repeat, there is a process they need to follow, which they will do before they announce what their decision is.

[silent majority]

I can understand the club having to consider legal ratification but when the player has told the club he is not guilty and then change is plea to guilty that for me says the club should at least suspend the player pending a investigation. Keeping quiet and doing nothing is sometimes the worst thing the club could do.

Keeping quiet yes, doing nothing, no.

[steve@dcfd]

My point was that we have given a narrative but no action. There is now another cycle of coverage and we are saying nothing about action - and given we now know the outcome we are going to be expected to have a view. I am not saying this is easy just that coverage will intensify and we cannot keep saying considering all options as to most folk this sounds shorthand for doing nothing.

How do you know there's no action?

The club haven't said they are considering all options, they have said they are considering their options, a subtle difference. And, again, I'll repeat, there is a process they need to follow, which they will do before they announce what their decision is.

People should wait as you say for any decision the process will give that.

[since-1969]

The judge still has to agree the evidence provided and its relevance to the charges and as Mason admitted his part and having done so the punishment handed out will have been carefully designed to give as much leniency as is permitted without risking an appeal from the crown .

[wing commander]

   its due process.
   Personally I'm happy for the club to do what they need to do,follow the correct procedure and come to a balanced decision based on the  factual information that they have, which I'm dam sure will be a lot more than a report in the Free Press...

     it's a sad state of affairs regardless of the outcome
 

[Chris Black come back]

My point was that we have given a narrative but no action. There is now another cycle of coverage and we are saying nothing about action - and given we now know the outcome we are going to be expected to have a view. I am not saying this is easy just that coverage will intensify and we cannot keep saying considering all options as to most folk this sounds shorthand for doing nothing.

How do you know there's no action?

The club haven't said they are considering all options, they have said they are considering their options, a subtle difference. And, again, I'll repeat, there is a process they need to follow, which they will do before they announce what their decision is.

I have no idea - but based on the public statement neither does anyone else.

I am not criticising the club less than 24 hours after this broke and I am sure they are working hard but the on the record statements (which is how 99.9pc will form their view of our action) have not as yet given any indication of action and for some this could be perceived as sitting on hands.

[IDM]

Sorry but the club statement is clear, if people then think that means they are sitting on their hands then that’s their problem, not the club’s..

[RoversAlias]

I know what CBCB is saying and I agree. The club has issued a very brief statement, at night, and nothing since. I don't want them to rush into things either and I certainly appreciate how difficult this situation is for the club but they need to come to their conclusion soon or else it will start to reflect badly on the club.

It may not seem like much to some either, but I notice the club hasn't tweeted the Club Statement once. I find that a bit peculiar. Lots of tweets today about things from tickets to Weldricks to match officials for the Portsmouth game, but no cursory tweet highlighting the statement on Mason.

The club has probably been caught a bit off-guard by Mason suddenly changing his plea to guilty, it seems as if he and the club have proceeded since the assault happened with the position that he was denying and contesting the allegations, but all that has changed now. I just hope the club come out with some firm information on what they plan to do as soon as they can, which it sounds as if will be the case according to SM's posts.

[Spilsby Red]

We all agree that the club make right decisions in many cases and I doubt this will be any different. The club need time to go down their own legal route to make the best decision for the club. Let’s allow them to do this, it would be unprofessional to air some views from the club in public, until they have made their final decision.
As supporters we are entitled to talk about what has happened and people are entitled to their views on the matter.

[Lifelong supporter]

   its due process.
   Personally I'm happy for the club to do what they need to do,follow the correct procedure and come to a balanced decision based on the  factual information that they have, which I'm dam sure will be a lot more than a report in the Free Press...

     it's a sad state of affairs regardless of the outcome

Apparently the club had representatives in court and will have heard what the prosecutor, Mason's QC and the judge had to say.
They won't have factual information other than that.
I can understand Mr Mason trying to defend his son but I can't see how taking a photo would leave DNA on the girl's bra.
What I can't understand is eight people liking his remarks - some of whom had already said he should be dismissed!
In the absence of any clause in his contract stating he would be liable to instant dismissal if he was convicted of any sexual offence the club will have to go through all the due processes.
They are probably right not to comment further until a decision has been made and it might be better if SM didn't comment about it on here on their behalf as well.
As he pleaded guilty there can be no prospect of an appeal, other than against his sentence.
In that case I would have a lot more sympathy for young Mr Mason if he had come out with a public statement admitting his shame and apologising for his behaviour, rather than allowing his father to continue to plead his innocence, and beg the girl and the club to forgive him.
I don't envy the club in their deliberations but I think the final outcome is inevitable.       
 

[karlos]

now on the bbc site and it sounds pretty brutal stating "the club will not comment on the case".

[Metalmicky]

I deduce that too many conclusions are being jumped at here..... In order to remedy this, I conclude that maybe we should just let things take their course....?

[IDM]

In my workplace and in I would assume most others, disciplinary investigators and procedures are private and limited to those who need to know..

A football club should be no different in that respect.

[RedJ]

In my workplace and in I would assume most others, disciplinary investigators and procedures are private and limited to those who need to know..

A football club should be no different in that respect.

Well it's just like the budget in that respect. Some fans seem to feel the need to know absolutely everything going on. Just like financial matters, nobody needs to know other than the club employees, really.

[ravenrover]

I deduce that too many conclusions are being jumped at here..... In order to remedy this, I conclude that maybe we should just let things take their course....?

In my workplace and in I would assume most others, disciplinary investigators and procedures are private and limited to those who need to know..

A football club should be no different in that respect.

Hurray people talking sense at last