Hillsborough police chief is facing charges for 95 deaths
Six people are to be prosecuted over 1989 disaster
HILLSBOROUGH MATCH commander David Duckenfield is to be charged with the manslaughter by gross negligence of 95 of the 96 Liverpool fans who died at the FA Cup semi-final in 1989.
At a private meeting in Warrington yesterday the Crown Prosecution Service told grieving family members it would also bring criminal proceedings against five other people, including former West Yorkshire Police Chief Constable Sir Norman Bettison, who is accused of deception in the aftermath of the disaster.
Owing to a technicality in law, charges cannot be brought in relation to the 96th casualty, Anthony Bland, who died almost four years later.
Four other individuals have been charged in relation to the disaster, including former Sheffield Wednesday safety officer Graham Mackrell who is charged with three offences relating to health and safety and safety at sports grounds. He and Duckenfield both face criminal charges which relate to the preparation for the game and the events of the day.
Former chief superintendent Donald Denton, former detective chief inspector Alan Foster and Peter Metcalf, the solicitor acting for South Yorkshire Police, are charged with attempting to pervert the course of justice relating to amendments made to police officers’ statements.
Bettison, a former chief inspector and superintendent with South Yorkshire Police, who went on to become the Chief Constable of Merseyside and West Yorkshire Police forces, has been charged as part of a parallel Independent Police Complaints Commission investigation into an alleged police ‘cover-up’.
In their statement the CPS said it would now need to apply to a High Court judge to lift an order previously imposed in relation to Duckenfield by a senior judge at the end of a 1999 private prosecution, in order to be able to proceed.
Sue Hemming, head of the CPS’ special crime and counter terrorism division, said: “We will allege that David Duckenfield’s 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.”
Barry Devonside, whose son Christopher, 18, was killed in the disaster, pumped his fist as he emerged from the meeting with lawyers and other relatives of the 96.
He said: “Everybody applauded when it was announced that the most senior police officer on that particular day will have charges presented to him.”
Ian Lewis, the partner at JMW Solicitors who is representing Duckenfield and Denton, said: “In light of the decision by the Crown Prosecution Service to commence criminal proceedings against David Duckenfield and Donald Denton, it would be inappropriate for me as their solicitor or for my clients themselves to make any comment.”
In a statement, Bettison said he was “disappointed to be charged”.
He said: “The charge is not in relation to my actions around the time of the disaster but in relation to comments I made years afterwards. I will vigorously defend my innocence as I have been doing for nearly five years.”
All of the defendants, with the exception of Duckenfield, will appear at Warrington Magistrates’ Court on August 9.
FAMILIES OF the Hillsborough victims burst into applause as they were informed criminal charges will be brought, more than 28 years after the deaths of their relatives.
Barry Devonside, whose 18-year-old son Christopher was killed, said he had been “frightened” prior to the private meeting between families and the Crown Prosecution Service in Warrington yesterday.
He said: “Everyone applauded when it was announced the most senior police officer on that particular day will have charges presented to him.”
Struggling to hold back tears, Mr Devonside said Christopher had been a “perfect son” who would have been 46 years old this year.
Evelyn McDonnell Mills, whose brother Peter McDonnell, 21, died in the disaster, said: “I’m really happy that we’ve finally got some charges after 28 years.
“I’m just sad that my brother Gerard, who campaigned for years, died in the first year of the new inquests and never got to see justice.”
Donna Miller was 22 when her 19-year-old brother Paul Carlile died at Hillsborough.
Now aged 50 and speaking in the moments before the announcement, she said the day carried particular poignancy for her after the death of their mother Sandra Stringer earlier this year.
“My mum died on April 26, exactly one year since the inquest verdict. “It is difficult for me. “When I held her in my arms after the verdict, little did I know she would die that day in 12 months.
“She was totally exhausted by it all.
“My mum had longed for this day.
“It has been hell at times for 28 years.
“The hardest thing is making people listen, people wanted us to just go away.
“We have put our lives on hold to fight for justice.”
Hillsborough Family Support Group chairman Margaret Aspinall said it is the “beginning of the end” for the families as she spoke to the media outside Parr Hall in Warrington yesterday morning.
Mrs Aspinall, whose 18-yearold son James was among the victims, said: “No one should have to go through what the families have gone through for 28 years to try and get to the truth and to get accountability.
“What has been achieved today will change things for the good of this nation.
“I think that’s the legacy of our 96, that they will have left behind.”
Trevor Hicks, whose teenage daughters Sarah, 19, and Vicki, 15, died in the disaster at the 1989 FA Cup semi-final, said: “This is a success for society at large, not just for us.”
Mr Hicks, who lives in Keighley and went on to become a key figure in the Hillsborough Family Support Group, added yesterday: “We move another step forward.”
We have put our lives on hold to fight for justice. Donna Miller, whose brother Paul Carlile died at Hillsborough aged 19.