On Wednesday (June 28th), the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) announced that the Hillsborough match commander David Duckenfield and five others have been charged in relation to the hillsborough disaster that took place in April 1989. As we delve into this subject matter further, certain questions do need to be asked: What exactly happened on that fateful day? Why were charges being brought against these individuals? Should they be, and finally, what now?
The facts
First of all let us explain what exactly the Hillsborough disaster was. As reported in the Express newspaper, the Hillsborough disaster took place on April 15th, 1989.
It was the location for the FA Cup semi-final between Liverpool FC and Nottingham Forrest. During the game, ninety-six Liverpool fans were "crushed" and another 766 were injured in a "deadly crush". This was due to the opening of the central pens at the Leppings Lane end that led to overcrowding and the crushing of fans in that area.
Why were charges brought?
However, whilst mourning such a terrible loss, it was what was to come that was most shocking; in particular the actions of those police individuals in charge on that day in question. South Yorkshire Police "initially blamed" Liverpool supporters for causing the disaster. It was this "smearing" of the victims, as the Telegraph newspaper put it that caused such outrage from the victim's families and was this false account of events, as they put it, that drove the campaign for justice for the ninety-six.
This relentless form of action from the justice campaign never relented and after an initial inquest was last year, it was the charges this week that is most significant. And this leads us to our second question; why were charges being brought against the police? Criminal charges were brought, as mentioned, to six former people, most significantly the South Yorkshire officer, David Duckenfield, who was in command of policing on that fateful day.
It was stated, as the Guardian reported, that Duckenfield failed to take personal responsibility on the day was "extraordinarily bad" and "contributed substantially" to those who died. Charges were also brought against Sir Norman Bettison, on four counts of misconduct in a public office. He was also charged because he "told lies" about his involvement in the disaster.
The correct decision?
Let us address the next question now; should those have been charged? In essence, was it their fault what caused the disaster? It seems to be the case. Whatever angle you view it from, it seems that if those in charge had acted differently, the tragedy may never have occurred. This was emphasised further last year at the inquest mentioned above. It was deemed that the victims were "unlawfully killed" and that the disaster was "caused by police blunders" as the Telegraph noted.
What now for the families?
After last year's verdict it was stated that they had been "completely vindicated" for their tireless actions to ascertain the truth. And this year, after charges were brought against the police this week, similar joy emanated from the families.
Trevor Hicks, who lost both teenage daughters Sarah and Vicki, stated, as reported in the Sun newspaper, that "we move another step forward" and that "this is a success for society at large, not just for us". But it seems that the campaigners are looking to the future. In addition to statements by the families of 'never again', it seems that the biggest message going forwards is essentially 'nobody is above the law'.
It has been a long journey for the families seeking justice and the truth. And now it seems that they have got it. But what mentioned above is correct; this must never happen again, and thankfully so far, it has not. And that may well be the greatest victory of all; the fact that the lessons most certainly have been learnt. I hope so, at least.
