By Ben Kerrigan
The Unlawful killing of 96 people at the Hillsborough disaster which has found nobody accountable has caused uproar among the family of the dead and the public at large.
After a trial at Preston Crown Court on Thursday off the back of a re-trial which lasted more than six weeks, it is a sad state of affairs. The acquittal means no-one will be held accountable for Britain’s worst sports stadium disaster, which claimed the lives of 96 people in 1989.
Jurors were that, eight minutes before the 1989 FA Cup semi-final between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest, Duckenfield ordered the opening of exit gates to relieve congestion outside turnstiles allocated to Reds supporters. This meant that fans who went through a congested gate overcrowded the tunnel leading to a fatal crush.
The hearing examined whether Duckesfield’s was negligent in causing the fatalities by failing to correctly assessing the consequences of his actions when he had enough time to do so.
Video footage released and played to the jury shows me Duckensfield appear to take responsibility for the killings.He agreed that his failure to correctly direct fans through the correct gate led to the consequences leading to several deaths. He admitted he had 3 minutes to consider the consequences of his actions not to open the gate despite having access to all the monitors in the ground and the geographical position of the ground.
He also admitted failings on his part, but said he was a human being and was under a lot of pressure. Excuses like that don’t wash with the victims of the families, not when their loved ones are dead and gone. The pain is difficult to farthom.
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Margaret Aspinall, whose 18-year-old son James died in the tragedy practically accused the judge, Sir Peter Openshaw of not being impartial. Speaking at a press conference in Liverpool after the verdict, the chair of the Hillsborough Family Support Group said: ‘I blame the system that is so morally wrong within this country that is a disgrace to this nation.
Jurors in this retrial of Duckenfield were played audio of his answers under examination. At one point the interviewer asks Duckenfield if he agrees that a child of average intelligence would have have known better and taken the correct decision.
Ms Aspinall continued: ‘When 96 people, they say 95 but we say 96, were unlawfully killed and yet not one person is accountable. ‘The question I’d like to ask all of you and people within the system is who put 96 people in their graves, who is accountable?
What a disgrace this has been today and what a shame on this country of ours. ‘We all know who is guilty, the families know who is guilty, the city know who is guilty. ‘But he can walk around now and get on with his life. To me that is a disgrace.
‘How can 96 be unlawfully killed and no one be accountable please give us the answer. ‘Who killed my son and 95 others?’ A series of failings both on the day of the Hillsborough tragedy and over the decade before contributed to the tragic crush on April 15, 1989. On the day of the tragedy Duckenfield, then a chief superintendent, ordered the opening of stadium gates to relieve congestion outside turnstiles allocated to Red supporters.
Christine Burke (left), daughter of Hillsborough victim Henry Thomas Burke and Louise Brookes, sister of victim Andrew Brookes speaking outside at Preston Crown Court after the trial Image: PA