BBC News Inquests into the 96 football fans who died in the 1989 Hillsborough disaster have concluded they were unlawfully killed. The matchday commander at Hillsborough was found not guilty of gross negligence manslaughter charges pertaining to his role in the football disaster 30 years ago. The farriers prosecution for perverting the course of justice is found not to be in the public interest and there is insufficient evidence against the police officer. The former South Yorkshire Police chief. Jury fails to reach a verdict on the charges against Mr Duckenfield, but convicts Mr Mackrell of a health and safety offence. 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. It is true the same stadium exit gate he ordered to be opened at 2.52pm opened minutes earlier without his instruction. It was closed after 26 seconds and around 150 supporters are believed to have entered. The acquittal of David Duckenfield is the latest twist in the history of a disaster which has lasted 30 years. Unlike Duckenfield, the families, survivors and those affected by Hillsborough cannot sleep easy. Bereaved families are angered that the inquests cannot consider the emergency response after that point, and an accidental death verdict is returned on 26 March 1991. David Duckenfield was in charge of policing the 1989 FA Cup semi-final, The people who lost their lives in the Hillsborough disaster, The crush developed in the Leppings Lane end of Hillsborough stadium, David Duckenfield pictured in 1989, a month after the Hillsborough disaster, Ninety-six people were fatally injured in the 1989 disaster. Ms Aspinall, chairwoman of the Hillsborough Family Support Group, thanked those who had supported the families over the past 31 years. When all Hillsborough legal proceedings are concluded we should, as a society, take time to consider these matters and learn lessons. It was David Duckenfield, Preston Crown Court heard, who told FA chiefs fans had gained entry through a forced stadium gate before the crush on the terraces beyond. 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. Lord Justice McCowan says he can see no fault in the coroner for cutting off the scope of the inquests at 3.15pm because he relied on medical evidence, and refuses to quash the verdicts. Debate about Hillsborough should not be about football or the city of Liverpool; this is a matter of civic safety that has implications for everyone in British society. He didn't breach his duty, he did what he was expected to do in difficult circumstances.". The new scrutiny is conducted by Lord Justice Stuart-Smith. 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The former South Yorkshire Police chief superintendent, 75, was in charge of the FA Cup semi-final in which 96 fans were fatally injured. David Duckenfield, who as an inexperienced chief superintendent in the South Yorkshire police was in charge of the match between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest, admitted he had not told the. Hawara: 'What happened was horrific and barbaric'. One called out in court I dont want your apology and several walked out. In February 2000, both officers appeal to the Divisional Court but fail and the trial is held in Leeds between 6 June and 24 July 2000. The inquests become controversial after Dr Stefan Popper limits their scope to events up to 3.15pm on the day of the disaster just nine minutes after the match was halted and excludes the witness evidence of two doctors inside the stadium. Although there were other causes, the main reason for the disaster was the failure of police control, it concludes. As always you can unsubscribe at any time. Sheffield Wednesday FC is also criticised for an inadequate number of turnstiles at the Leppings Lane entrance and the poor quality of crush barriers on the terraces, some of which collapsed during the disaster. The Hillsborough Family Support Group mounts a private prosecution of Duckenfield and his deputy, superintendentBernard Murray, for manslaughter. Match commander tells inquest that watching a documentary made him realise the effect the disaster had on the bereaved families. The prosecution in the case alleged Duckenfield, 75, had a 'personal responsibility' for what happened at the match between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest, when 96 people were fatally injured . The inquest jury finds that Hillsboroughs 96 victims were unlawfully killed and that Liverpool fans were not responsible for the disaster. The families of the 96 Liverpool fans who died at the 1989 FA Cup semi-final, the survivors who managed to get out of the overcrowded pens at the Leppings Lane end of Sheffield Wednesdays ground, and the campaigners who have fought relentlessly for justice for decades were expecting the verdict. Click to reveal An investigation was launched after more than 1,500 police pocket notebooks relevant to the Hillsborough disaster were uncovered weeks before the trial of David Duckenfield was due to start, it. Benjamin Myers QC told the jury his client had become "the focus of blame". I hoped it would go away. Recipe: Ayurvedic Jewish penicillin by Dr Rupy Aujla, Sunaks Brexit deal explained in five points, Messi vs. Ronaldo: all-time goals and statistics. Meanwhile, the families of six victims appeal for a judicial review application to quash the inquest verdict. One of the many tragedies of the Hillsborough disaster is the first explanation for what claimed the lives of those men, women and children was a suggestion it was Liverpool supporters who were responsible. They applied to have the case against them dismissed after a month of evidence in a trial that had been awaited for decades by the victims families. The funnel-shaped nature of the area meant that the congestion was hard to escape for those at the front, says the BBC. Supporters were not responsible for what happened. That should never have happened, and we will continue to learn the . The CPS announces that all charges against Sir Norman Bettison are being dropped because there is insufficient evidence for a realistic chance of a conviction, which is the test for all prosecutions. He admitted everything at the 2015 inquests into the disaster, saying that his professional failings led to the deaths of 96 innocent men, women and children. The inquest blames police decisions and the layout of the stadium for the deaths. If things go wrong it is important that investigations explain why and ensure the situation never occurs again. It may sound like a clich to say lessons must be learnt, but todays verdict means this has never been more relevant or important. Mr Duckenfield's defence counsel argued the case against him was "deeply unfair". 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 said he would regret them to his dying day. All rights reserved. But this influx caused further crushing inside the stadium, with fans at the front attempting to climb onto the pitch to safety. The court heard the chief superintendent ordered the opening of exit gates at the Leppings Lane end of the ground at 2.52pm, eight minutes before kick-off, after the area outside the turnstiles became dangerously overcrowded. It has dashed their hopes repeatedly over the years. The jury was shown pictures of fans in the Leppings Lane end of the stadium as the disaster unfolded, At the crash site of 'no hope' - BBC reporter in Greece. Lord Justice Peter Taylors interim report into the tragedy puts the blame on South Yorkshire Police. The CPS announces that a police officer and a farrier will not be prosecuted over allegations that they fabricated a story about a police horse being burnt with cigarettes at Hillsborough. Read about our approach to external linking. 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. Last year it was confirmed no-one else would face prosecution for the unlawful killing of 96 men, women and children. 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. A jury found the former South. Hennesseys daughter Charlotte, who was six at the time of the disaster, has had the course of her existence changed. Yet this was not a doddery septuagenarian being persecuted inappropriately for actions long buried in the past. Amid growing calls for transparency, the Hillsborough Independent Panel is set up. ", Clive Coleman, BBC legal affairs correspondent. The report says a pitch invasion was unlikely at the beginning of a match and there was no effective leadership to organise rescue efforts or relieve pressure from behind the pens where the crush happened. 2023 BBC. He vomited inside the bag before he died. 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. Video, At the crash site of 'no hope' - BBC reporter in Greece, Record numbers of guide dog volunteers after BBC story. David Duckenfield, who was the chief superintendent in charge of the game between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest, told FA officials at 3.15pm that "a gate had been forced and there had been an. 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 said footage of a mother having to cuddle her dead child on the dirty floor of the Hillsborough gymnasium was the most moving thing he had ever seen, and that it had shown him "what it means to a mother to lose a loved one". Around 2,000 fans enter, many heading down a central tunnel and into already busy terrace pens, leading to the tragic crush. He told the court: "We say David Duckenfield did do what he was expected to do as match commander. At the crash site of 'no hope' - BBC reporter in Greece. He said this as schoolboys, sisters, a dad and his son were among those crushed inside pens created because they were treated like thugs rather than humans. The then Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) concludes that there is no new evidence as alleged by the HFSG and their legal representatives, and therefore no grounds for reopening the police investigation into the Hillsborough disaster. The ruling states that all the victims were dead by 3.15pm. Wed 1 Mar 2023 12.40 . And 30 years means many people, especially families, have had to constantly relive their terrible experience.". Mr Duckenfield, now 71, had claimed that after a large crowd built up outside the turnstiles at the Leppings Lane end of the stadium, Liverpool fans had broken in, causing a rush of people to flood into the fenced-in terraces. avid Duckenfield can finally rest easily. VideoAt the crash site of 'no hope' - BBC reporter in Greece, Why Covid lab-leak theory is now being taken seriously, Blackpink lead top stars back on the road in Asia, Exploring the rigging claims in Nigeria's elections, 'Wales is in England' gaffe sparks TikToker's trip, Ukraine war casts shadow over India's G20 ambitions, Record numbers of guide dog volunteers after BBC story. Mr Mackrell is fined 6,500 for the offence, sparking outrage from victims relatives who called the penalty shameful. The families watching in a conference room in Liverpool were aghast. This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks. One family member shouted: "Stitched up again.". 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. 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