Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in, Former South Yorkshire Police Chief Superintendent promoted just 19 days before disaster, Find your bookmarks in your Independent Premium section, under my profile. Who has been left to carry the weight and pain of the disaster? The 96 who lost their lives in the disaster, Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in, Please refresh your browser to be logged in, Police among six to be charged over Hillsborough disaster. "Thirty years means myths took root about fans being a cause of the disaster, now unequivocally shown by both defence and prosecution evidence to be wrong. Sue Hemming, head of the Crown Prosecution Services special crime division, said the charge could not relate to the 96th victim of the disaster, Anthony Bland, as he died almost four years later. Peter Metcalf, the solicitor acting for the South Yorkshire Police during the Taylor Inquiry and the first inquests - charged with doing acts with intent to pervert the course of justice relating to changes made to witness statements. 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. I must say, I like a lot of others swallowed the police story of it being the fault of drunken Liverpool fans. I know how important these proceedings have been to everyone, even though they came far too late. Assistant Commissioner Rob Beckley, who was in overall command of Operation Resolve - the criminal inquiry into the disaster, acknowledged the jury "had a difficult and challenging task". It was even more dispiriting to hear the defence barrister, Benjamin Myers QC, recycle all the rancid myths that grew out of Duckenfields dissembling: that fans turned up late, alcohol was a factor and supporters ignored police instructions. The gaffer failed to do something or made the wrong decision. That is all true but some people make out the cops knew what would happen when no one did. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. He acknowledged that even after he said he realised, at 3:04pm on the day, that he was facing a medical emergency not an incident of disorder, he called for police dogs to come to the ground, not ambulances. David Duckenfield can finally rest easily. The acquittal was not a shock. Asked by Mansfield why he had chosen to remain silent for 26 years, Duckenfield said that he had been prompted to finally tell the whole truth after the publication of the report by the Hillsborough Independent Panel in 2012 and a television programme he had seen about the disasters effect on the families. But a turning point came on the 20th anniversary of the crush, when Labour minister Andy Burnham was booed and heckled after speaking to thousands of fans gathered at Anfield. He is survived by his wife, Jackie, andby his brother, Eddie. In this role he oversaw the Offices of Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs, which engaged the American public and state and local elected officials on the foreign policy policies and priorities of the administration. Norman Bettison, a former officer with South Yorkshire Police and subsequently Chief Constable of Merseyside and West Yorkshire Police - who faces four offences of misconduct in a public office over alleged lies in accounts of his involvement in the 1989 disaster. He is one of six people to be charged, including three other police officers, a solicitor who acted for South Yorkshire Police and Sheffield Wednesdays safety officer. Posted. Trevor Hicks, whose daughters Sarah and Vicki died in the disaster, said the decision to charge Duckenfield and five others was a success for society at large, not just for us.. The agony of the families of the dead is unimaginable. Or by navigating to the user icon in the top right. He has over 20 years experience in public diplomacy, corporate and marketing communications, brand building, crisis communications and public policy. Mr Duckenfield did not dispute that he ordered the opening of a gate at Hillsborough to let fans in, or that he failed to close the tunnel to the terraces which were already full. As Dr. Bowe explains it, "With skin cycling, you cycle through your skincare routine in a very deliberate way that drives results to get glowing, radiant skin. Because any time you or your loved ones attend a public event it should be with the knowledge that the people responsible for maintaining order and safety will be competent. David Duckenfield, 75, walked free from court after jurors agreed he could not be held criminally responsible for the tragedy Credit: Peter Byrne/PA A retired South Yorkshire police chief has. That, and other reprehensible and exceptionally bad failings were a significant cause of the deaths from the lethal crush that developed in pens 3 and 4, Matthews told the court. Along with 96 fatalities, more than 700 were injured. Four other individuals are also facing prosecution. Mr Duckenfield's wife, Ann, went over to comfort her husband in the courtroom after the verdict was read out. Allen told the inquests last week that he had policed hundreds of football matches and attended thousands as a Liverpool fan. The former chief superintendent of South Yorkshire police, David Duckenfield, leaves after giving evidence to the Hillsborough inquest in Warrington. A jury of seven women and three men were sent out on Monday to consider their verdict and returned to find former Chief Superintendent Duckenfield not guilty. Duffield brought a showmans touch to the role, sporting loud bow ties and a straw hat. Benjamin Myers QC told the jury his client had become "the focus of blame". He described the policing outside the Leppings Lane turnstiles, where Duckenfield accepted the South Yorkshire police lost control at 2:40pm, as non-existent or shambolic at best. Ex-chief constable Sir Norman Bettison, is accused of four counts of misconduct in public office. Retreating into relative obscurity in Dorset until the launch of a fresh inquest in 2014, Mr Duckenfield is believed to be a keen golfer and apparently resorted to booking a taxi in a false name to evade reporters at Heathrow Airport last year. Paul Robinson, whose brother Steven was killed in the stadium crush, said: "As a family we would like to thank all those who have supported us over the years in our quest for justice and accountability. Hennesseys daughter Charlotte, who was six at the time of the disaster, has had the course of her existence changed. The experienced previous chief superintendent, Brian Mole, had been moved to command the division at Barnsley. to go cycling. 100% CAUCASIAN Our ethnicity data indicates the majority is Caucasian. 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. Ninety-six fans were crushed to death and hundreds injured after support railings collapsed during a match between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest, Football fans are rushed away on a stretcher at Hillsborough stadium, 15 April 1989. "We say that is unfair, there are so many other people at fault, and so many causes," the barrister added. ERIC is an online library of education research and information, sponsored by the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) of the U.S. Department of Education. We will allege that David Duckenfields failures to discharge his personal responsibility were extraordinarily bad and contributed substantially to the deaths of each of those 96 people who so tragically and unnecessarily lost their lives, she said. Barry Devonside, whose son Christopher, 18, died in the disaster, said: "I'm shocked and stunned by the verdict of the jury. Duckenfield added that he had no idea what motivated him to blame other people for his mistakes. The prosecution alleged Mr Duckenfield had a "personal responsibility" for what happened at the match. Who is accountable?. They knew the law would let them down. Duckenfield responded: Sir, I was not outside the turnstiles, but I am not in a position to dispute his view.. Duckenfield's role on the day was match commander. David Duckenfield, a Police Chief Superintendent, who has been accused of the death of 96 people in the tragic incident of the Hillsborough disaster, was found not guilty in charge of manslaughter. "He understands the public interest in this case, but would ask that his privacy and that of his family is respected, and will not be commenting further. Former chief superintendent David Duckenfield, the match commander at the game, agreed to a request to open the gates to prevent crushing at the turnstiles outside the ground, the inquest in . He vomited inside the bag before he died. More than 2,000 fans then entered through exit gate C, with many heading for the tunnel ahead of them, which led to the central pens of the terrace where the crush happened. Sue Hemming, the CPS director of legal services, 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. Today they get trained by shady organisations you can't find anything out about. We also may change the frequency you receive our emails from us in order to keep you up to date and give you the best relevant information possible. "We, the families, have fought for 30 years valiantly.". Former police officer David Duckenfield is facing manslaughter charges over the deaths of 95 people in the 1989 Hillsborough Disaster. The majority verdict from the jury at Preston Crown Court marks a big setback for the bereaved families who have campaigned for justice over the past 30 years. Relatives of seven of the 96 people killed were in the public seats in Preston, and many more watched in Liverpool. Duckenfield, 75, is charged with the manslaughter, by gross negligence, of 95 of the people killed. 96 Liverpool supporters lost their lives during a crush at an FA Cup semi final against Nottingham Forest at the Hillsborough football ground in Sheffield, South Yorkshire in 1989. Despite the terrible consequences, he should not be prosecuted for this error. The prosecution alleged that Duckenfields failure to identify hazards at the turnstiles, monitor the numbers waiting to come in, relieve the pressures outside, monitor the numbers in the central pens and direct people away from the tunnel and central pens amounted to gross negligence. He was suspended from duty after the first public inquiry in 1989, retiring from South Yorkshire Police two years later with an index-linked pension reportedly worth 23,000 a year. Simultaneously he worked as a marketing man in the then buoyant British cycle industry, helping to publicise the radical small-wheeled Moulton bike, one of the defining designs of the 60s. avid Duckenfield can finally rest easily. The prosecution of Hillsborough match commander David Duckenfield was "breathtakingly unfair" as he was made to take the blame for others, a jury has heard. Hillsborough match commander David Duckenfield has been found not guilty of the gross negligence manslaughter of 95 Liverpool fans in the 1989 disaster. David Duckenfield was born on August 30, 1944 in Sheffield, Yorkshire, England. Family members of those who died at Hillsborough were in the Preston courtroom to listen to the evidence, while approximately 40 people watched a live broadcast of proceedings from Liverpools Cunard building. A lawyer representing Mr Duckenfield and former Chief Superintendent Donald Denton, who is charged with perverting the course of public justice by altering witness statements, said it would be inappropriate to make any comment amid continuing criminal investigations. 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Several people whose family members died at Hillsborough in 1989 walked out of the new inquests into the disaster as the former policeman who commanded the FA Cup semi-final tried to explain why he had not told the truth for 26 years, and apologised again to them. For the viewer Duffield was either a surreal entertainer or a constant irritant. . Medical assistance at Hillsborough was woefully inadequate. To prove that Moultons could be as fast as conventional large-wheel machines, he set a Cardiff to London record in 1962, at a time of six hours 42 minutes for the 162 miles. No criminal charges were recommended over police blunders of the first magnitude listed in the final report, which resulted in sweeping changes to football stadiums across the UK including the abolishment of standing terraces. The experienced previous chief superintendent, Brian Mole, had been moved to the. 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