Now the Crown Prosecution Service could consider a prosecution against the former chief superintendent from South Yorkshire police after a jury decided his actions amounted to "manslaughter by gross negligence" due to a breach of his duty of care to fans. Benjamin Myers QC told the jury his client had become "the focus of blame". High Court judge Lord Goldring chairs the new inquests in Warrington, which last more than two years and becomes the longest jury case in British legal history. Inquests into the 96 football fans who died in the 1989 Hillsborough disaster have concluded they were unlawfully killed. The 96 Liverpool supporters unlawfully killed at Hillsborough. For a person to be found guilty of gross negligence manslaughter the prosecution has to prove that he - or she - owed a duty of care to the victim and negligently breached it. But an inquest is not a criminal court, and so it was for another jury to decide whether Mr Duckenfield's mistakes amounted to gross negligence manslaughter. The prosecution in the case alleged Duckenfield, 75, had a "personal responsibility" for what happened at the match between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest on April 15 1989, where 96 men, women . This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks. Amid growing calls for transparency, the Hillsborough Independent Panel is set up. We use your sign-up to provide content in the ways you've consented to and improve our understanding of you. PC Maxwell Groome was on duty for the match at Sheffield Wednesdays stadium. The matchday commander at Hillsborough was found not guilty of gross negligence manslaughter charges pertaining to his role in the football disaster 30. Unlike Duckenfield, the families, survivors and those affected by Hillsborough cannot sleep easy. More than 2,000 fans entered through exit gate C once it was opened and many headed for the tunnel ahead of them, which led to the central pens where the crush happened. He didn't breach his duty, he did what he was expected to do in difficult circumstances.". David Conn Tue 1 Apr 2014 16.32 EDT The South Yorkshire police officer in charge of the 1989 FA Cup semi-final at Sheffield Wednesday's Hillsborough football ground, at which 96 Liverpool. lifts the historic stay of further prosecution on Mr Duckenfield, fails to reach a verdict on the charges against Mr Duckenfield. Following judicial advice, the PCA decides against proceeding against Mr Murray alone. The full report reinforces criticism of the police while its recommendations lead to the introduction of all-seater stadiums and the removal of perimeter fencing around grounds. The most exhaustive and longest inquest in British history was dismissed as not being pertinent. Judge Sir Peter Openshaw rejects a defence application to ban reporting on the Hillsborough trial until the jury delivers its verdict. Inquests open in Sheffield, heard by the local coroner, and South Yorkshire Police renews its argument that drunk supporters who arrived late and without tickets contributed to the disaster. Home secretary Theresa May orders a new criminal investigation into the disaster, Operation Resolve. The finding undermines the decision made by the coroner in the first inquests to limit their scope to events before 3.15pm, and not consider the chaotic medical response after that point. If things go wrong it is important that investigations explain why and ensure the situation never occurs again. Sheffield Wednesday's former club secretary Graham Mackrell was found guilty of a health and safety offence in May 2019. This means that we may include adverts from us and third parties based on our knowledge of you. "The journey that reached today's stage, and will continue, is testament to the perseverance and determination of all involved in the ongoing campaign for justice," the club said. Former Sun editor Kelvin MacKenzie apologises for the papers 1989 front page. Abuse of process arguments for other defendants fails. David Conn. Gate C, leading to the Leppings Lane terraces, is opened. Here is how events have unfolded in the 30 years since the disaster. What has been heard here in this court will have been surprising to many, she said. Former Hillsborough match commander David Duckenfield at Preston Crown court. Solicitor Peter Metcalf, former chief superintendent Donald Denton and former detective chief inspector Alan Foster are all charged with perverting the course of justice. A handwritten note apparently written by Tony Blair, asks why? Mr Duckenfield, of Ferndown, Dorset, was cleared after a seven-week retrial at Preston Crown Court. By this point he had not even told his boss, the on-call Assistant Chief Constable Walter Jackson, of his order for gates to be opened. Duckenfield, a retired chief superintendent, 75, denied the gross negligence manslaughter of 95 Liverpool supporters at the FA Cup semi-final on April 15 1989. Read about our approach to external linking. After reviewing 450,000 documents, the Hillsborough Independent Panel publishes a report highlighting police failings and the alleged campaign to blame Liverpool supporters for the disaster. The Crown Prosecution Service has said it will seek a retrial, which Duckenfield is expected to oppose, at a hearing scheduled for 24 June. He said: "He has a resilient, passive and expressionless external presentation which gives no indication of his state of mind so don't draw an adverse inference against him.". I apologise unreservedly to the families and I hope they believe it is a very, very sincere apology. Prosecutors allege Duckenfield should have taken action to close the tunnel that led to those pens, a tactic his lawyer said he and other experienced officers were unaware of, but which the court heard had been used at Hillsborough before. Match commander tells inquest that watching a documentary made him realise the effect the disaster had on the bereaved families. The matchday commander at Hillsborough was. And yet 23 minutes later he suggested it was the supporters, some of whom were dying beneath him, who were responsible. The Crown Prosecution Service decides that following consideration of all the evidence and documentation, there is no evidence to justify any criminal proceedings against South Yorkshire Police officers, Sheffield Wednesday FC, Sheffield City Council or Eastwoods the structural engineering firm that designed the pens. The Hillsborough match commander apologised to the families. Read about our approach to external linking. At the crash site of 'no hope' - BBC reporter in Greece. The court was played audio of the retired chief superintendent giving evidence to inquests in 2015. 2023 BBC. Christine, whose father Henry Burke was killed in the disaster, addressed the judge after the verdict was read out. Mr Duckenfield's wife, Ann, went over to comfort her husband in the courtroom after the verdict was read out. Those systems failed on 15 April, 1989, and no one will ever take responsibility for that failure. Yet this was not a doddery septuagenarian being persecuted inappropriately for actions long buried in the past. "Over this period, I have had to come to terms with reality, and that is why, over the period, you might say I dug my head in the sand, didn't admit things to myself, but I am now very much older, very much wiser, and very much more understanding of the events of the day and have decided to tell the whole truth. But while his acquittal means he did not fail to a criminal standard, it does not mean he did not fail at all. After the verdict a CPS statement said that the decision of the jury does not affect the findings in the inquest which ruled the victims of the tragedy were unlawfully killed. But he now admits the crush occurred after he ordered an exit gate to be opened allowing 2,000 Liverpool fans to enter the stadium in just five minutes. Start your Independent Premium subscription today. David Duckenfield found not guilty over Hillsborough disaster Hillsborough: Former Sheffield Wednesday club secretary fined 6,500 Sheffield Wednesday FC is also criticised for an inadequate. He told the court: "We say David Duckenfield did do what he was expected to do as match commander. The stories of personal loss and individual pain have too often been overlooked. Addressing the families in the court he said: It has now dawned on me what it means to you, and I am dreadfully sorry.. He also admitted to a "terrible lie". Something went wrong, please try again later. The inquest jury concludes that the 96 victims were unlawfully killed and that Liverpool fans behaviour did not contribute to the crush. There has been barely any for those who were mindbogglingly inept at Hillsborough. The CPS spokeswoman said: "The disaster at Hillsborough 30 years ago has caused unimaginable suffering to the families of those who sadly lost their lives and to everybody affected by the tragic events of that day. Summing up the case, the judge said: "The deaths of 96 spectators, many of whom were very young, is, of course, a profound human tragedy attended by much anguish and anger which for many has not passed with time. The Crown Prosecution Service says changes in the evidence of two witnesses and the death of a third meant that there was no longer a realistic prospect of conviction. He was. It was the founding myth of Hillsborough. The Crown Prosecution Service announces that six people are to be charged with offences in relation to the disaster Mr Duckenfield is charged with manslaughter and former Sheffield Wednesday club secretary Graham Mackrell for health and safety offences. David Duckenfield, the police commander at the Hillsborough football stadium disaster, was on Thursday found not guilty of the gross negligence manslaughter of 95 Liverpool fans who were. South Yorkshire coroner Dr Stefan Popper begins the inquest process into the deaths, but only considers events up until 3.15pm on the day of the disaster, nine minutes after the match was stopped, so the role of the emergency services after the disaster does not come under scrutiny. Sir Peter Openshaw, the judge, told the jury that the inquests findings which were not discussed in court were quite irrelevant. Despite having a greater following than Nottingham Forest, Liverpools supporters were allocated the smaller end of the stadium, Leppings Lane, so that their route would not bring them into contact with Forest fans arriving from the south. It fuels calls for a new inquiry and is later awarded a Bafta. Hawara: 'What happened was horrific and barbaric'. The jury at Mr Duckenfield's original trial earlier this year failed to agree a verdict. Turnips vs. tomatoes: should salad crisis force UK shoppers back to their roots? "We, the families, have fought for 30 years valiantly.". The acquittal of Hillsborough match commander David Duckenfield has caused shock and anger after a 30-year campaign for criminal accountability for the disaster. He also rejects a prosecution application to prevent tweeting from court, sharing articles on social media or embedding video into news articles. And it is not his fault those who deserved to face the same scrutiny he did will never be held accountable for the deaths of the 96. ", Hillsborough inquests: What you need to know, 14 questions the Hillsborough jury answered, Human error to blame for train crash - Greek PM, At the crash site of 'no hope' - BBC reporter in Greece. What's he waiting for? They knew the law would let them down. By the following year, more than 700 claims have been lodged and South Yorkshire Police and Sheffield Wednesday FC start making out-of-court settlements without admission of liability. This was to be a fatal decision as thousands of Liverpool. david duckenfield cycling. Shortly before kick-off, in an attempt to ease overcrowding outside the entrance turnstiles, the police match commander, David Duckenfield, ordered exit gate C to be opened, leading to an influx of supporters entering the pens. Crucially, the panel finds that 41 victims did not have signs of the crush injuries originally claimed by pathologists, and so may have been saved. About 45 family members watched the verdict from the Cunard building in Liverpool, where the trial was screened. ", "I have no excuses. They live with the misery every day. "I would like to know who is responsible for my father's death because someone is.". 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