THE Court of Appeal in London today will quash the convictions of the Bridgewater Four, who were jailed for the murder of a paperboy, because of "damaging fresh evidence" relating to a confession by one of the men, Mr Pat Molloy.
At a special hearing, the Crown Prosecution Service will declare the convictions unsafe. Mr Molloy, who died in 1981, always insisted that his confession was beaten out of him by West Midlands Police officers.
It is understood the three surviving men, Mr Jimmy Robertson (60), Mr Michael Hickey (33) and his cousin Vincent (39), will immediately walk free from the court after their convictions have been quashed. Last night they were all suddenly transferred to Brixton Prison, south London, pending their release.
It is hoped that Mr Molloy will receive a posthumous pardon.
Their solicitor, Mr Jim Nichol, said Mr Molloy's confession was central to the conviction of the men in 1978 for the murder of Carl Bridgewater (13) at Yew Tree Farm, Wordsley, near Stourbridge.
"There is powerful fresh evidence of a false confession that was shown to one of the defendants by the West Midlands Serious Crime Squad. It was a lying confession shown to him to make him confess.
"I am delighted but angry that they have spent 18-and-a-half years in prison for a crime they did not commit. I fully expect my clients to walk out of court free men, he said.
Campaigners stated they hoped all the new evidence, which does not just relate to the confession, will be heard by the Court of Appeal. Police failed to disclose fingerprints which were found on Carl's bicycle and which the defence believed to be his murderer's. They do not match any of the four men.
Mrs Ann Skett, the mother of Mr Vincent Hickey, said she was delighted the "police cover-up" had finally been exposed. "When we heard the news, we screamed and yelled and danced. There is no bitterness in my heart, I don't hate anybody. I just know he is going to come out.
"The prosecution service didn't want to admit that there had been a mistake made. There had already been mistakes with the Birmingham Six and the Guildford Four. What are people going to think of our police service? I think there was a lot of covering-up done" she added.
Since their conviction there have been, eight, separate police inquiries into the case and one lengthy appeal hearing which was dismissed in 1989.
Two British Home Secretaries have also refused to refer the case to the Court of Appeal. Last year, Mr Nichol attempted again to have the case referred back, which has now succeeded.
However, two of the original jurors at the men's trial and the chief prosecutor have since also accepted the men's protestations of innocence. Mr Tim O'Malley, the jury foreman, welcomed the decision to free the men and called for an immediate public inquiry to examine why the jury was presented with false evidence.
"The confession was a total fabrication. We were misled, and that also makes me angry. Several police inquiries failed to find" these men innocent. Somebody has to stand up and be counted for that but somebody who has died will probably be blamed and it will all be swept under the carpet," he said.
Mr Chris Mullin, the Labour MP who campaigned for the Birmingham Six, said the quashing of the men's convictions brought to "an end another great scandal for British justice".
The campaign to free the men was led by Mr Michael Hickey's mother, Mrs Ann Whelan, who, elicited confessions from prosecution witnesses that they had lied on oath and discovered new alibi evidence.
Her son, who was only 17 when he was jailed, has repeatedly refused parole insisting that he would not leave prison until his conviction was quashed. In January 1981 Michael Hickey became, the first prisoner to gain Home Office permission to take a truth-drug test, which he passed. His cousin Vincent also passed later that month.
However, Mr Michael Hickey's mental health has deteriorated during his imprisonment and he repeatedly has been held in a secure hospital unit. It is believed this deterioration stems from his 1983 prison rooftop demonstration to protest his innocence, which last for 89 days during the winter months.
Last year Carl Bridgewater's parents broke their 19-year silence to state they believed the four men murdered their son. However, yesterday Paul Foot, the journalist who wrote a book about the case, suggested the police's original suspect for the killing should now be re-interviewed.