page_title: HM Advocate v Sheridan and Sheridan
section_title: Defence case
hierarchical_section_title: HM Advocate v Sheridan and Sheridan / The trial / Defence case
caption_attribution_description: English: Court entrance The High Court of Justiciary situated in the Saltmarket. http://www.scotcourts.gov.uk/
context_page_description: Her Majesty's Advocate v Thomas Sheridan and Gail Sheridan was the 2010 criminal prosecution of Tommy Sheridan, a former Member of the Scottish Parliament and his wife Gail Sheridan for perjury in relation to the earlier civil case Sheridan v News Group Newspapers. Tommy Sheridan was found guilty and sentenced to three years in prison, whereas Gail was acquitted.
context_section_description: The defence opened its case on 3 December. Both Sheridans declined to act as witnesses themselves.  Many of the witnesses called by Sheridan were members of Solidarity, his own party, including Hugh Kerr, Rosemary Byrne and Mike Gonzalez.  He also called Andy Coulson, Downing Street director of communications and former News of the World editor, who denied that he had any knowledge of phone hacking at the News of the World, or that he knew Glenn Mulcaire, the private detective at the centre of controversy.  Tom Watson had briefed Sheridan's team about alleged phone hacking a few days earlier.
  Four witnesses who were present at the crucial SSP executive meeting of 9 November 2004 claimed that Sheridan did not admit to visiting a sex club at the meeting.
  On 17 December the defence case completed.  The prosecution then dropped the last remaining charge against Gail Sheridan, who was acquitted by the judge.  Later that day her solicitor made a statement on her behalf outside the court thanking her legal team.
caption: Glasgow High Court, where the trial took place
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