We said it was the truth - it wasn't for that we're deeply ashamed and profoundly sorry". Twenty-three years ago I was handed a piece of copy from a reputable news agency in Sheffield, in which a senior police officer and a senior local MP were making serious allegations against fans in the stadium. That it might so occur was foreseeable". [199] It was announced on 25June that Duckenfield would face a retrial, which was scheduled to start on 7October at Preston Crown Court. In December 2009, Home Secretary Alan Johnson said the Hillsborough Independent Panel's remit would be to oversee "full public disclosure of relevant government and local information within the limited constraints set out in the disclosure protocol" and "consult with the Hillsborough families to ensure that the views of those most affected by the disaster are taken into account". The lingering effects of the disaster were seen as a cause, or contributory factor, in all of these.[68]. 15 April 1989. Fans' behaviour, to the extent that it was relevant at all, made the job of the police, in the crush outside Leppings Lane turnstiles, harder than it needed to be. Taylor Report - Wikipedia Speaking after the disaster, Kelly backed all-seater stadiums, saying "We must move fans away from the ritual of standing on terraces". [154], Prime Minister David Cameron also responded to the April 2016 verdict by saying that it represented a "long overdue" but "landmark moment in the quest for justice", adding "All families and survivors now have official confirmation of what they always knew was the case, that the Liverpool fans were utterly blameless in the disaster that unfolded at Hillsborough. [106] Purpose-built stadiums for Premier League and most Football League teams since the report are all-seater. [163] Coroner Sir John Goldring warned the jury that there was "not a shred of evidence" that any Masonic meeting actually took place, or that those named were all Freemasons,[164] advising the jury to cast aside "gossip and hearsay". . [15], Hillsborough Stadium had been constructed in 1899 to house Sheffield Wednesday. [227], Other services took place at the same time, including at the Anglican Liverpool Cathedral and the Roman Catholic Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral. Had it been reversed, the disaster could well have occurred in a similar manner but to Nottingham supporters". The crowd numbered more than 60,000, including around 6,000 Liverpool fans, and all the match proceeds went to the Hillsborough appeal fund. Andrew Devine, aged 22 at the time of the disaster, suffered similar injuries to Tony Bland and was also diagnosed as being in a persistent vegetative state. The disaster has been acknowledged on 15April every year by the community in Liverpool and football in general. Their claims were dismissed and the Alcock decision was upheld. The extreme reaction to Mr Bigley's murder is fed by the fact that he was a Liverpudlian. In response, Trevor Hicks, chairman of the Hillsborough Family Support Group, rejected MacKenzie's apology as "too little, too late", calling him "lowlife, clever lowlife, but lowlife". ", "Report summary (Page 14 of 14): Summary of Chapter 12: Behind the headlines: the origins, promotion and reproduction of unsubstantiated allegations", "Hillsborough disaster: new inquest likely after damning report", "Hillsborough files: Report raises spectre of criminal cases and shaming", "Report summary (Page 5 of 14): Summary of Chapter 3: Custom, practice, roles, responsibilities", "Hillsborough Disaster Report Published Wednesday 12 September", "Hillsborough statement: Cameron and Miliband apologise", "Kelvin MacKenzie offers 'profuse apologies' over Hillsborough", "Hillsborough families demand new inquests be held", "New Hillsborough inquest likely after damning report", "Hillsborough families call for FA apology over disaster", "Hillsborough report: FA could face charges, lawyers tell Liverpool fans' families", "Hillsborough: Sheffield Wednesday and police urged to admit blame", "Premier League chairman must resign, says Hillsborough support group", "Hillsborough: home secretary says law-breakers must face investigation", "Hillsborough: Norman Bettison resigns from West Yorkshire police", "Hillsborough: police chief 'boasted' of role in smearing fans", "Hillsborough: Football fans' behaviour made police's job harder, says Sir Norman Bettison", "Bettison due 83k-a-year pension despite Hillsborough probe", "Hillsborough inquests: Jury reaches decision on unlawful killing question", "Hillsborough disaster: Fans unlawfully killed", "Hillsborough inquest verdicts quashed by High Court", "Margaret Aspinall: I am so grateful to the people of Liverpool", "Tears of joy as inquest jury exonerates the 96 Hillsborough victims", "Hillsborough inquests: Reaction to unlawful killing conclusion", "Hillsborough inquest suggests police 'should be prosecuted', "Calls for prosecutions after 'greatest miscarriage of justice of our times', "Labour Party: 'Greatest miscarriage of justice of our times', "Jack Straw expresses regret over failure of Hillsborough review", "Jack Straw on 1997 Hillsborough inquiry: 'I wish I could turn the clock back', "Kelvin MacKenzie is still blaming other people for S*n's shameful front page", "Watch ex-S*n editor Kelvin MacKenzie squirm as he's chased by cameraman", "Freemason police officers tried to 'shift blame' after Hillsborough disaster, inquest told", "Hillsborough: David Duckenfield was in same Masons lodge as officer he replaced", "Hillsborough tragedy: Did the Freemasons influence the Police? [320], In 1994 Roger Cook led an investigation into the Hillsborough disaster in a series 9 edition of The Cook Report entitled "Kevin's Mum". Hillsborough trial: 'Not enough' turnstiles at stadium - BBC News [181][182], In April 2016, the Crown Prosecution Service announced that it would consider bringing charges against both individuals and corporate bodies once the criminal investigation by the Independent Police Complaints CommissionOperation Resolvehad been completed. [236], On 30 April 1989, a friendly match organised by Celtic F.C. [4], Police disciplinary charges were abandoned when Duckenfield retired on health grounds and, because Murray was unavailable, it was decided not to proceed with disciplinary charges against him. Possibly connected to the excitement, a surge in pen 3 caused one of its metal crush barriers to give way. Following the finding that they did not have a case to answer, the restrictions were lifted.[207]. Hillsborough disaster: deadly mistakes and lies that lasted decades As a result of the disaster, Liverpool's scheduled match against Arsenal was delayed from 23April until the end of the season, and the game eventually decided the league title. Such an unrealistic approach gives cause for anxiety as to whether lessons have been learnt".[105]. [140][141][142] Bettison denied the claim, and other allegations about his conduct, saying:[143]. What he has got to understand is that we were speaking the truth for 23 years and apologies have only started to come today from them because of yesterday. The name, originally that of a hill in South Africa, usually refers to an unusually steep stand. Hillsborough disaster: Witnesses give their accounts of the events that trying to usher myself and my husband out . It was performed by Lord Justice Stuart-Smith. A memorial garden in Hillsborough Park with a 'You'll never walk alone' gateway. The Hillsborough Stadium Disaster Interim Report - Wikisource Garston and Halewood MP Maria Eagle called for the law to be changed to "prevent another catastrophic failure of justice".[204][205]. Chief Superintendent Mole himself was to be transferred to the Barnsley division for "career development reasons". [13] They ruled that the supporters were unlawfully killed owing to grossly negligent failures by police and ambulance services to fulfil their duty of care. [271], Following the April 2016 verdict of unlawful killing, The Sun and the first print edition of the Times (both owned by News International), did not cover the stories on their front pages, with The Sun relegating the story to pages 8 and 9. [245], Many of the more serious allegationssuch as stealing from the dead and assault of police officers and rescue workersappeared on 18 April,[241] although several evening newspapers published on 15 April 1989 also gave inaccurate reporting of the disaster, as these newspapers went to press before the full extent or circumstances of the disaster had been confirmed or even reported. Everything was against us. The transfer was to be done with immediate effect on 27 March 1989. A combination of economic misfortuneits docks were, fundamentally, on the wrong side of England when Britain entered what is now the European Unionand an excessive predilection for welfarism have created a peculiar, and deeply unattractive, psyche among many Liverpudlians. An eight-foot-high clock, dating from the 1780s, was installed at, A memorial plaque dedicated to the 96 at Goodison Park in Liverpool, home of local rivals. Why are we treated like animals?' [232] Supporters of Everton, Liverpool's traditional local rivals, were affected, many of them having lost friends and family. [294] Johnson apologised at the time of the article, travelling to Liverpool to do so,[295] and again following the publication of the report of the Hillsborough Independent Panel in 2012; Johnson's apology was rejected by Margaret Aspinall, chairperson of the Hillsborough Families Support Group, whose son James, 18, died in the disaster:[296]. Lord Justice Taylor, Final Report (Cm 962), Hillsborough: The Report of the Hillsborough Independent Panel, Liverpool Football Club Hillsborough Memorial. This was unlikely at the beginning of a match. Other fans were pulled to safety by fans in the West Stand above the Leppings Lane terrace. Of those statements, 116 were amended to remove or change negative comments about South Yorkshire Police. The IPCC announced on 12 October 2012 that it would investigate the failure of the police to declare a major incident, failure to close the tunnel to the stands which led to overcrowded pens despite evidence it had been closed in such circumstances in the past; changes made to the statements of police officers; actions which misled Parliament and the media; shortcomings of previous investigations; and the role played by Norman Bettison. [278] Everton F.C. In 2009, on the 20th anniversary of the disaster, Liverpool's request that their Champions League quarter-finals return leg, scheduled for 15 April, be played the day before was granted. [52] In the following days more than 200,000 people visited the "shrine" inside the stadium. [290], The Spectator was criticised for an editorial which appeared in the magazine on 16 October 2004 following the death of British hostage Kenneth John "Ken" Bigley in Iraq, in which it was claimed that the response to Bigley's killing was fuelled by the fact he was from Liverpool, and went on to criticise the "drunken" fans at Hillsborough and call on them to accept responsibility for their "role" in the disaster:[292]. [59], During the final match of the 198889 English Football League season, contested on 26 May 1989 between Liverpool and second-place Arsenal, the Arsenal players presented flowers to fans in different parts of Anfield in memory of those who had died in the Hillsborough disaster. [60][61], A disaster appeal fund was set up with donations of 500,000 from the UK Government, 100,000 from Liverpool F.C. A crush occurred at the Leppings-Lane end of the ground during the 1981 semi-final between Tottenham Hotspur and Wolverhampton Wanderers after hundreds more spectators were permitted to enter the terrace than could safely be accommodated, resulting in 38 injuries, including broken arms, legs and ribs. With 97 deaths and 766 injuries, it has the highest death toll in British sporting history. [T]here was no effective leadership either from control or on the pitch to harness and organise rescue efforts. [250][251] The Daily Express also carried Patnick's version, under the headline "Police Accuse Drunken Fans" which gave Patnick's views, saying he had told Margaret Thatcher, while escorting her on a tour of the ground after the disaster, of the "mayhem caused by drunks" and that policemen told him they were "hampered, harassed, punched and kicked". 'Why us? [85], In February 2000, a private prosecution was brought against Chief Superintendent David Duckenfield and another officer, Bernard Murray. The only people that weren't against us was our own city. "[38], Outside the stadium, a bottleneck developed with more fans arriving than could be safely filtered through the turnstiles before 3:00pm. The prosecution argued that the crush was "foreseeable" hence the defendants were "grossly negligent". [43], The crowd in the Leppings Lane Stand spilt onto the pitch, where the many injured and traumatised fans who had climbed to safety congregated. No, his apology doesn't mean a thing to me. With 96 deaths and 766 injuries, it remains the worst such case in British sporting history.. [104], Taylor concluded his criticism of South Yorkshire Police by describing senior officers in command as "defensive and evasive witnesses" who refused to accept any responsibility for error: "In all some 65 police officers gave oral evidence at the Inquiry. [179], On 12 July 2013, it was reported that the IPCC had found that in addition to the now 164 police statements known to have been altered, a further 55 police officers had changed their statements. Hillsborough inquests jury rules 96 victims were unlawfully killed A teenager who died in the Hillsborough disaster tried in vain to save her younger sister as the . [46]:149[47][48][49][50] The remaining 39 ambulances were collectively able to transport approximately 149 people to either Northern General Hospital, Royal Hallamshire Hospital, or Barnsley Hospital for treatment. The first reading was read by Liverpool goalkeeper Bruce Grobbelaar. [4] Following the Taylor Report, the Director of Public Prosecutions ruled there was no evidence to justify prosecution of any individuals or institutions. [31] The first planning meeting for the semi-final took place on 22 March and was attended by newly promoted Chief Superintendent David Duckenfield, not by Mole. "[115], The Hillsborough Independent Panel was instituted in 2009 by the British government to investigate the Hillsborough disaster, to oversee the disclosure of documents about the disaster and its aftermath and to produce a report. Liverpool's goalkeeper, Bruce Grobbelaar, reported fans from behind him pleading to him for help as the situation worsened. Labour MP Steve Rotheram, commented: "How insensitive does somebody have to be to write that load of drivel? The report stated that placing fans who were "merely unconscious" on their backs rather than in the recovery position, would have resulted in their deaths due to airway obstruction. "[289] The British edition disassociated itself from the controversy, stating: "FHM Australia has its own editorial team and these captions were written and published without consultation with the UK edition, or any other edition of FHM. We have been in contact with the Hillsborough Family Support Group and the Hillsborough Justice Campaign to express our deep regret and sincere apologies. [162] Groome also claimed that match commander Duckenfield was a member of the "highly influential" Dole lodge in Sheffield (the same lodge as Brian Mole, his predecessor). In 1997 Lord Justice Stuart-Smith concluded that there was no justification for a new inquiry. Troubador. [325] After the inquest verdict, the BBC aired the documentary on 8May 2016, with additional footage from the inquest, as well as its final verdict. The entrance had a limited number of turnstiles, of which just seven . Hillsborough: what has happened in 30 years since disaster | The Week UK The prosecution ended on 24July 2000, when Murray was acquitted and the jury was unable to reach a verdict in the case of Duckenfield. I held those views then, I hold them now. The event also raised cash for the Marina Dalglish Appeal which was contributed towards a radiotherapy centre at University Hospital in Aintree.[230][231]. [243], On 19 April, four days after the disaster, Kelvin MacKenzie, editor of The Sun, ordered "The Truth" as the front-page headline, followed by three sub-headlines: "Some fans picked pockets of victims", "Some fans urinated on the brave cops" and "Some fans beat up PC giving kiss of life". Turnstiles numbered 1 to 10, ten in all, provided access to 9,700 seats in the North Stand; a further six turnstiles (numbered 11 to 16) provided access to 4,456 seats in the upper tier of the West Stand. It made recommendations on the safety of crowds penned within fences,[21] including that "all exit gates should be manned at all times and capable of being opened immediately from the inside by anyone in an emergency".[22]. Kenny Dalglish, Liverpool's manager at the time of the disaster, read a passage from the Bible, "Lamentations of Jeremiah". It was held that claimants who watched the disaster on television/listened on radio were not 'proximal' and their claims were rejected. This left planning for the semi-final match to Duckenfield, who had never commanded a sell-out football match before, and who had "very little, if any" training or personal experience in how to do so. Blaming Liverpool fans persisted even after the Taylor Report of 1990, which found that the main cause was a failure of crowd control by SYP. Fans were still streaming into pens 3 and 4 from the rear entrance tunnel as the match began. A further 20 were from counties adjacent to Merseyside. [241] As well as The Sun's 19 April 1989 "The Truth" article (see below) other newspapers published similar allegations; the Daily Star headline on the same day reported "Dead fans robbed by drunk thugs"; the Daily Mail accused the Liverpool fans of being "drunk and violent and their actions were vile", and The Daily Express ran a story alleging that "Police saw 'sick spectacle of pilfering from the dying'." Sadly I must report that for the most part the quality of their evidence was in inverse proportion to their rank". Another survivor had spent eight years in psychiatric care. On the day of the match, radio and television broadcasters advised fans without tickets not to attend. [133], Calls were made for the resignation of police officers involved in the cover-up, and for Sheffield Wednesday, the police and the Football Association to admit their blame. In a post-match briefing to discuss the incident, Sheffield Wednesday chairman Bert McGee remarked: "Bollocksno one would have been killed". [56], The FA chief executive Graham Kelly, who had attended the match, said the FA would conduct an inquiry into what had happened. Liverpool supporters were allocated the North and West ends (Leppings Lane), holding 24,256 fans, reached by 23 turnstiles from a narrow concourse. Popper's decision regarding the cut-off time was subsequently endorsed by the Divisional Court who considered it to have been justified in the light of the medical evidence available to him. Former Chief Inspector Sir Norman Bettinson faced four counts of misconduct in public office. This included the Wolverhampton-based Express & Star, which reported that the match had been cancelled as a result of a "pitch invasion in which many fans were injured". Is there, perhaps, a lesson there for the Hillsborough campaigners? Perimeter and lateral fencing was removed and many top stadiums were converted to all-seated. The Liverpool manager, Rafael Bentez, set 96 balloons free. That was after the IPCC's Hillsborough Contact team had received 230 pieces of correspondence since October 2012. A total of 42 ambulances arrived at the stadium. Although there was enough evidence to charge the farrier with perverting the course of justice, it was felt not to be in the public interest to charge him. [125] The report concluded that the then Conservative MP for Sheffield Hallam, Irvine Patnick, passed inaccurate and untrue information from the police to the press. [253] In fact many Liverpool fans helped security personnel stretcher away victims and gave first aid to the injured. [95], Taylor found there was "no provision" for controlling the entry of spectators into the turnstile area. [110] Hillsborough: the truth about the causes of the disaster This prompted 380 complaints and the BBC apologised, saying that the character was simply reminding another character, former football hooligan Jase Dyer, that the actions of hooligans led to the fencing-in of football fans. They have no shame", "I live in a part of England that receives first edition of The Times. Importantly, Stuart-Smith's report supported the coroner's assertion that evidence after 3:15pm was inadmissible as "that by 3:15pm the principal cause of death, that is, the crushing, was over. [99] However, on the day of the disaster, "by 2:52pm when gate C was opened, pens 3 and 4 were over-full [] to allow any more into those pens was likely to cause injuries; to allow in a large stream was courting disaster". "[290], The vice-chairman of the Hillsborough Family Support Group, Philip Hammond, said he wanted all football fans to boycott the magazine, saying, "I am going to write to every fanzine in the countryincluding Liverpool F.C. I have considered the circumstances in which alterations were made to some of the self-written statements of South Yorkshire Police officers, but I do not consider that there is any occasion for any further investigation. and 25,000 each from the cities of Liverpool, Sheffield, and Nottingham. Peter Caton 2012. ", "Original 'copy' of Hillsborough story filed by White's news agency", "Hillsborough Inquests: 'Regrets' over pickpocketing claims", "Hillsborough: 20 years on, Liverpool has still not forgiven the newspaper it calls 'The Scum', "Hillsborough report: Prime Minister David Cameron's statement in full", "How the Sun's 'truth' about Hillsborough unravelled", "Hillsborough: telling the truth about the scum", "MacKenzie speaks out on Hillsborough comments", "Hillsborough: Former Sun editor apologises to Liverpool", "Liverpool Vs The Sun: How the City Rid Itself of the UK's Biggest Paper", "Liverpool's 23-year boycott of The Sun newspaper", "Sun boycott reduced Euroscepticism on Merseyside, study shows", "Hillsborough: The Sun 'profoundly sorry' over false fan conduct reports", "Newspaper review: Hillsborough 'justice' hailed, but not on Sun's front page", "News International chairman James Murdoch apologises to Liverpool over Sun's coverage of Hillsborough tragedy", "Hillsborough files: Reaction to release of government papers", "Hillsborough: Kelvin MacKenzie offers 'profuse apologies to the people of Liverpool', "Not Even The Sun Could Have Expected This Level of Anger After Hillsborough Inquest", "The Sun Relegates Hillsborough To Page 8, Outrage Ensues", "Sun and Times front pages criticised for ignoring Hillsborough verdict", "S*n and Times slammed for ignoring Hillsborough on front pages", "Hillsborough: Times admits front page 'mistake', "The Hillsborough Verdict Shows People Still Haven't Forgiven The Sun Even After 27 Years", "The S*n hides behind wall of silence after landmark Hillsborough verdicts", "Liverpool FC ban for Sun journalists over Hillsborough", "Everton join Liverpool in banning Sun journalists over coverage", "Hillsborough Inquiry: Press Release No. 's Deva Stadium was the first English football stadium to fulfil the safety recommendations of the Taylor Report, with Millwall F.C. The findings concluded that 164 witness statements had been altered. The clock at the Kop End stood still at 3:06pm, the time that the referee had blown his whistle in 1989 and a minute's silence was held, the start signalled by match referee from that day, Ray Lewis. He later apologised and said "I know that fan unrest played no part in the terrible events of April 1989 and I apologise to Liverpool fans and the families of those killed and injured in the Hillsborough disaster if my comments caused any offence." Police 'got away with' Hillsborough safety before disaster, inquest [97] The failure by the police to give the order to direct fans to empty areas of the stadium, was described by Taylor as "a blunder of the first magnitude". [289] As a result, Emap Australia, who owned FHM at the time, pledged to make a donation to the families of the victims. The jury saw CCTV images of the girls and their father going through the turnstiles at 13:53. [234][235] In April 1989, Bradford City and Lincoln City held a friendly match to benefit the victims of Hillsborough. [246] These media reports and others were examined during the 2012 Hillsborough Independent Panel report. Trust v Bland [1993] A.C. 789, a landmark House of Lords decision in English criminal law, that allowed the life-support machine of Tony Bland, a Hillsborough victim in a persistent vegetative state, to be switched off. 'You'll never walk alone.'". It was a fundamental mistake. [98], There was no means for calculating when individual enclosures had reached capacity. The Memorial bench remains at Spion Kop Lodge. It obviously wasn't a silly mistake; nor was it a simple oversight. "[114] This was controversial as the subsequent response of the police and emergency services would not be scrutinised. People are very upset by it. Two British stage plays also dealt with the disaster with different view points: On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. Finally, seven turnstiles (lettered A to G) provided access to 10,100 standing places in the lower tier of the West Stand. He was omitted from the first team squad and never played for the club in any capacity again. How the Hillsborough disaster unfolded. During a 2011 debate in the House of Commons, the Labour MP for Liverpool Walton, Steve Rotheram, read out a list of the victims and, as a result, the names were recorded in the Hansard transcripts. [174][175][176][177][178] On 16 October 2012, the Attorney General announced in Parliament he had applied to have the original inquests verdicts quashed, arguing it proceeded on a false basis and evidence now to hand required this exceptional step. [71][72] The death toll reached 96 in March 1993, when artificial feeding and hydration were withdrawn from 22-year-old Tony Bland after nearly four years, during which time he had remained in a persistent vegetative state showing no sign of improvement. Stand Up Sit Down A Choice to Watch Football. [244], In Liverpool local journalist John Williams of the Liverpool Daily Post wrote in an article titled "I Blame the Yobs"[245] that "The gatecrashers wreaked their fatal havoc Their uncontrolled fanaticism and mass hysteria literally squeezed the life out of men, women and children yobbism at its most base Scouse killed Scouse for no better reason than 22 men were kicking a ball". [88] The views of both were dismissed by the Taylor report. The 96 people who died at the Hillsborough football stadium disaster in 1989 were unlawfully killed and a catalogue of failings by police and the ambulance services contributed to their deaths,. This article was presumably published before there were any reports that people had been killed. [126][127], The panel noted that, despite being dismissed by the Taylor Report, the idea that alcohol contributed to the disaster proved remarkably durable. [45], The agreed upon protocol for the South Yorkshire Metropolitan Ambulance Service (SYMAS) was that ambulances were to queue at the entrance to the gymnasium, termed the casualty reception point, or CRP. [279], The journalist Edward Pearce was criticised for writing a controversial article in the aftermath of the disaster, at a time when a number of victims' funerals were taking place. The jury found they did not contribute to the danger unfolding at the turnstiles at the Leppings. [103], Regarding the decision to allocate Liverpool spectators to the West and North Ends, Taylor stated "I do not consider choice of ends was causative of the disaster. [43] Chief Superintendent John Nesbit of South Yorkshire Police later briefed Michael Shersby MP that leaving the rescue to the fans was a deliberate strategy, and is quoted as saying "We let the fans help so that they would not take out their frustration on the police" at a Police Federation conference. How and when all 96 victims of the Hillsborough disaster died South Yorkshire coroner Dr Stefan Popper limited the main inquests to events up to 3:15pm on the day of the disasternine minutes after the match was halted and the crowd spilt onto the pitch. Hillsborough disaster - YouTube [266] Following the second inquest in 2016, The Sun's eighth and ninth pages carried images of the 96 victims and an editorial which apologised "unreservedly", saying "the police smeared [supporters] with a pack of lies which in 1989 the Sun and other media swallowed whole".