Hillsborough disaster
The Hillsborough disaster was a serious spectator disaster , with 96 dead and 766 injured on April 15, 1989 at Hillsborough Stadium in Sheffield . It occurred during the FA Cup semi-final match between Liverpool FC and Nottingham Forest and is still one of the greatest disasters in football history, alongside the mass panic in Peru in 1964 and the mass panic in Ghana in 2001 .
The cause of the accident has long been disputed. It was not until 27 years later, the jury a commission of inquiry stated that the 96 victims of Sheffield "killed unlawfully" (English unlawfully killed ) were. The tragedy was triggered by serious mistakes by the police and not - as the authorities have claimed for years - the misconduct of the audience.
The then head of police operations, David Duckenfield , had admitted , contrary to his earlier statement, that he was partly responsible for the disaster by opening a gate carelessly. As early as 2012, an independent commission had suggested in its report that members of the police and emergency services were largely to blame for both the causes of the disaster and its extent. This resulted in an official apology from Prime Minister David Cameron , the South Yorkshire Police , the FA and The Sun newspaper for the role they and their organizations played in the action.
background
Hillsborough Stadium has been the home of the Sheffield Wednesday professional club since it was built in 1899 . In 1989 it had a capacity of 52,135 spectators, of which 14,556 were seated on the two-tier grandstand at Leppings Lane End to the west. While the upper tier consisted of 4456 seats, the lower tier was purely a standing room with 10,100 seats. Only seven turnstiles were available at the entrance for the entry to the lower tier . A metal fence separated the lower tier from the interior of the stadium. The lower tier itself was divided into a total of seven blocks ("pens"), which were also separated from one another by fences.
As early as 1981, in the course of the FA Cup semi-final between Tottenham Hotspur and Wolverhampton Wanderers, there was a crush on the Leppings Lane End, in which 38 fans were injured. In the following years, too, there was always overcrowding in the standing room. In 1988 Liverpool and Nottingham Forest met in the FA Cup semi-finals in Hillsborough. Back then, too, the Liverpool fans were housed on Lappings Lane End and reported a large crowd in the two middle blocks Pen 3 and Pen 4.
On March 20, 1989, the FA Cup semi-final game between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest was awarded by the Football Association to Hillsborough. David Duckenfield had only recently been promoted and for the first time operations manager at a football game in Hillsborough.
course
Many fans enjoyed the day of the game in the surrounding bars and pubs and did not make their way to the stadium until relatively late. The game was scheduled for 3 p.m. local time, at 2:20 p.m. a large crowd had formed at the entrance to Leppings Lane End, which grew to around 5,000 fans by 2:40 p.m. Admission was slow and a request from the police whether the game could start later was rejected by the FA. As the pressure of the crowd of people pouring in at the front end of the entrance was growing, the police feared that the waiting spectators were in danger of their lives.
Inside the stadium, a crowd had also formed, which concentrated exclusively on pen 3 and pen 4, while a number of seats remained free in the adjacent blocks on the left and right.
At 2:52 p.m. Duckenfield opened an additional escape gate (Gate C) to relieve pressure on fans trying to get into the stadium. Within five minutes, another 2,000 fans streamed into the stadium, many of them running towards the tunnel in front of them, which led to pens 3 and 4, so as not to miss the approaching kick-off. None of the outsiders knew that a dangerous crowd had already formed in the two blocks and so there was no regulation that prevented the fans from running into the two blocks.
The game started at 3 p.m. At this point in time, some fans climbed out of the two overcrowded blocks over the fences into the interior of the stadium in order to avoid the adjacent blocks. In the following minutes, more and more people climbed over the fences to escape the crowd. The police initially thought they were troublemakers who wanted to storm the field and pushed some of them back into the blocks. At the top of overcrowded pens 3 and 4, desperate spectators climbed into the upper tier.
In the fifth minute of the game, Liverpool's Peter Beardsley hit the crossbar of the opposing goal with a shot, causing many fans to lean forward and thus increase the pressure. A breakwater gave way in Pen 4 . Many visitors rushed forward and were buried among other fans. Despite the chaotic conditions in the two blocks, in which those in front were already pressed against the fences until they became motionless, the police did not allow the escape gates to be opened to the interior.
Liverpool goalkeeper Bruce Grobbelaar reported hearing cries for help from the blocks behind him. He brought the situation to the attention of referee Ray Lewis. In the sixth minute of the game, Superintendent Greenwood of the South Yorkshire Police Department spotted the situation, ran onto the field and asked Lewis to stop the game. This interrupted the encounter and led the players back to their cabins. Meanwhile, rescue operations started to get the fans out of the crowded blocks. Inside the stadium, paramedics, police officers and fans began resuscitation while others used the side advertising boards as stretchers.
In the end there were 96 dead and 766 injured, another victim died days later in hospital, the last after almost four years in a coma. Most died from asphyxia . The youngest victim was only ten years old. This is Jon-Paul Gilhooley, a cousin of the later longtime captain of Liverpool FC, Steven Gerrard .
consequences
Two days after the tragedy, Home Secretary Douglas Hurd promised to pass a law that would oblige all clubs in the league to ban standing room from their stadiums.
This disaster, only four years after Bradford and Heysel , after an investigation and the final Taylor Report, contributed in the long term to the fact that today there are only seats and no fences in most English stadiums. The standing ban was first introduced in England and later adopted by FIFA and UEFA for international matches.
The replay at Old Trafford , scheduled 22 days after the disaster, was won by Liverpool 3-1. Two weeks later, Liverpool also won the FA Cup final at Wembley Stadium , this time 3-2 after extra time against local rivals Everton .
After an initial investigation, completed in 1991, came to the conclusion that all the deceased had died in an accident, there was no political reappraisal for a long time. Civil claims by relatives against David Duckenfield and his deputy Bernard Murray were also dismissed. It was not until 2009 that an independent commission of inquiry was set up, chaired by the Bishop of Liverpool. After 139,000 people signed a petition, the British Parliament decided on October 17, 2011 that the Commission should receive all the files on the accident. This published its report on September 12, 2012. It emerged that the blame for the accident was not to be found with the fans, but with the police. The report also named the number of 41 victims who could have been saved if medical care had started quickly enough. In coming to terms with the accident, the report accused the police of having changed 164 statements, 116 of which had cast the police's behavior in a bad light that day. On the basis of this report, the Attorney General 's office resumed the proceedings and requested the Supreme Civil Court of Great Britain to reverse the judgment given on the disaster, which happened on December 19, 2012.
Goldring Commission of Inquiry
As a result, a new commission of inquiry under the direction of Judge John Goldring began its work on March 31, 2014 in Warrington . In 2016, she ruled that the death of the fans was not an accident, but was caused by the violation of regulations and laws. The commission found that the police had inadequate planning for the game and that the response to large crowds was slow and flawed. It was found that the police had not noticed the overcrowding of certain areas of the stadium when more fans were let in, who were then directed along the wrong paths. In addition, the police officers in charge of the supervision did not intervene in the admission process as appropriate. In addition to the police, Sheffield Wednesday was also responsible for the disaster, as there were deficiencies in the stadium that had not been remedied due to outdated safety standards. The club did not prepare the course of the game with the police. At the beginning of the disaster and during its course, the police did not recognize the seriousness of the situation and the causes quickly enough and accordingly did not take any countermeasures. In addition, it triggered the disaster alert too late - an allegation that is also made to the South Yorkshire ambulance service . The club was expressly acquitted of misconduct for its behavior on the day of the accident, as were the fans, who had previously been frequently criticized.
As a result of the investigation, the prosecution stated that they were preparing two proceedings against the police, one of which would deal with possible criminal violations by police officers who contributed to the death of the fans and the other possible subsequent cover-up of facts by the police in the wake of the disaster. One possible charge would primarily concern Duckenfield, who had already admitted to the investigative commission that he had previously been untruthful. Prosecution would mean, however, that a judgment to end the prosecution from the year 2000 would have to be overturned; At that time there was a civil case against Duckenfield and his deputy Bernhard Murray, in which Murray was acquitted and in the context of which the jury could not find a verdict on Duckenfield.
Further investigations into criminal proceedings were prepared against the club Sheffield Wednesday and Graham Mackrell, the club's then chairman, as well as the club's then security officer because of the security deficiencies in the stadium. In addition, the Football Association (FA) should be prosecuted for the selection of the stadium for a game of their competition. The British Home Secretary Theresa May announced in a parliamentary debate that the prosecution would decide in 2016 whether charges would be brought against, among other things, manslaughter, abuse of public office, misleading the judicial authorities or violating security regulations.
David Crompton, chief of police in South Yorkshire, apologized for the behavior of the police in dealing with the disaster after the investigation report was published. The apology, as well as the appearance of the police officers in the investigation process, was perceived by the public as a step backwards from the apology made in 2012. A further statement by the police department followed, which was intended to counteract this impression, but it was decided later that day to release Crompton from his activity with immediate effect, as there were doubts that he could adequately handle the situation. Crompton did not return to work until he retired, which had long been planned for fall 2016.
accusation
Based on the findings of the Goldring Commission, the public prosecutor's office first brought charges against six people in June 2017. David Duckenfield has been charged with gross negligence on 95 cases. According to the prosecutor, his failure was "extremely bad and contributed significantly to the death of every one of the 96 people who lost their lives so tragically and unnecessarily". In addition, three other police officers and a lawyer were charged with breach of duty and obstruction of justice, and former Sheffield Wednesday executive Graham Mackrell was charged with violating safety regulations. With the exception of the Duckenfield trial, which had not yet been formally charged, the proceedings at the Magistrates' Court in Warrington began in August 2017. There, the trial took less than half an hour, in which the defendants only formally confirmed their personal details and Mackrell, pleaded not guilty, to the Crown Court in Preston , where it should proceed on September 6, 2017.
In fact, the process did not continue until September 2018 with a preparatory hearing. In the meantime, it had become known that a police officer and a farrier accused of fabricating an untrue story about a police horse deliberately burned with cigarette butts, thereby misleading the judiciary, would no longer be prosecuted for lack of public interest . In addition, charges of breach of official duties against former Commissioner Sir Norman Bettinson were dropped for lack of evidence and little chance of conviction. Relatives of the victims then announced that they would appeal this decision.
On January 14, 2019, the proceedings against Duckenfield and Mackrell were finally opened in Preston. Previously, both defendants had pleaded not guilty again. Two months later it became known that on the one hand Duckenfield would not be asked to provide further evidence in his defense and thus no final judgment would take place, and on the other hand Mackrell could expect an acquittal of the allegation of violating the stadium's security guidelines for lack of evidence. Still, on April 3, 2019, Mackrell was convicted of endangering public health and safety. Against Duckenfield, a new trial was finally initiated, which took place again from October 7 of the same year at Preston Crown Court. There, David Duckenfield was finally acquitted on November 28, 2019 of the charge of grossly negligent manslaughter in 95 cases.
reporting
Four days after the Hillsborough disaster, the tabloid The Sun, under the title "The Truth," falsely alleged that Liverpool fans had obstructed police rescue attempts, robbed victims and even urinated on victims. As part of the Goldring investigation it was clarified that these allegations had been distributed unfiltered to various media by the White's news agency from Sheffield and had been adopted unchanged by the Sun. For her part, White's relied on information from a police officer who admitted that he had compiled his statements from various communications from colleagues and that they were not true. The Sun has a hard time because of this affair, especially in the region Liverpool until today; Due to the ongoing boycott of purchases under the slogan “Don't buy The Sun!”, their circulation there fell from 400,000 to just 12,000. It was not until 15 years after the tragedy that the largest circulation paper in Great Britain came to an apology and spoke of the "most terrible mistake in the history of the newspaper". Nevertheless, the responsible editor-in-chief Kelvin MacKenzie continued to assert: “I didn't regret it then and still do not regret it today.” Only after the publication of the new investigation report in September 2012 did he change his mind and admit: “It would have been much more correct if I had chosen the heading 'The Lies' instead of 'The Truth'. "
The fact that in April 2016 the Sun published the results of the Goldring investigation on pages eight and nine instead of on its cover, led to a shit storm , especially via the short message service Twitter . The renowned daily newspaper The Times , which originally also did not have the news on its page one, changed this for later editions as a result of public opinion and because of criticism from various members of the editorial team. John Witherow, a Times editor , said it was a mistake not to get the news on the front page immediately and that it had been corrected. No statement has been made by the Sun regarding its decision.
reception
In 1989, The Christians , Holly Johnson , Paul McCartney , Gerry Marsden and Stock Aitken Waterman recorded the old Liverpool anthem Ferry 'Cross The Mersey for the benefit of the victims of the disaster. The song was number one on the UK charts for three weeks .
The Hillsborough disaster is also discussed in the episode Cold Vengeance in the English TV crime series For All Cases Fitz as well as in the book Fever Pitch by Nick Hornby and in the film of the same name .
In their song SYMM ("South Yorkshire Mass Murderer") from the album This Is My Truth Tell Me Yours (1998), the Welsh rock band Manic Street Preachers addresses the role of the police and law enforcement officers that led to the tragedy. Jimmy McGovern , also mentioned in the song , made a documentary on the subject in 1996.
Commemoration
- In the aftermath of the tragedy, the club emblem of Liverpool FC was supplemented by two torches on the flanks and the words You'll never walk alone , in order to create a lasting memory of the victims. This extended coat of arms is the association's official logo to this day; In addition, said lettering is also attached above the main entrance gate of Anfield Road .
- On the eve of the 27th anniversary of Hillsborough in April 2016, both Liverpool and Dortmund supporters presented their own large choreography with the number 96 immediately before the kick-off of the clash in the quarter-finals of the Europa League in Anfield and sang the club song You'll never walk together alone . Both fan groups were then to that of the FIFA first ever FIFA Fan Award excellent, gestures fan will be honored with the special.
- Since the 2017/18 season (first presentation in April 2017 for the club's 125th anniversary), every Liverpool FC shirt has been embroidered “96” below the collar on the back of the shirt to commemorate the 96 fatalities of the disaster.
See also
literature
- Phil Scraton: Death on the Terraces: The Contexts and Injustices of the 1989 Hillsborough Disaster . In Paul Darby, Martin Johnes, Gavin Mellor (Eds.): Soccer and Disaster . Routledge, Oxford 2005, ISBN 0-7146-5352-7 , pp. 59-76.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Hillsborough verdict, fans were not to blame , on kicker.de, accessed on April 26, 2016.
- ↑ Hillsborough officer admits he lied about crucial order to open exit gate , Guardian article , March 12, 2015
- ↑ Hillsborough tragedy: Police officer in charge confesses a lie , Spiegel Online article from March 11, 2015
- ↑ Hillsborough papers: Cameron apology over 'double injustice' , BBC article , September 12, 2012
- ↑ WebCite query result. Retrieved December 7, 2018 .
- ↑ a b Liverpool Echo: Bruce Grobbelaar: I heard the crowd at Hillsborough cry 'Please help us ..' April 6, 2009, accessed December 7, 2018 .
- ^ How the Hillsborough disaster happened . April 14, 2009 ( bbc.co.uk [accessed December 7, 2018]).
- ^ How the Hillsborough disaster happened . April 14, 2009 ( bbc.co.uk [accessed December 7, 2018]).
- ^ How the Hillsborough disaster happened . April 14, 2009 ( bbc.co.uk [accessed December 7, 2018]).
- ↑ 11 Friends Special: The Eighties , pp. 86 ff - ISSN 1860-0255 .
- ↑ Hillsborough Disaster: Commons debate after e-petition , www.bbc.co.uk, October 17, 2011 (December 19, 2011)
- ↑ MPs call for Hillsborough papers release , www.bbc.co.uk, October 17, 2011 (December 19, 2011)
- ^ Owen Gibson and David Conn: Hillsborough: the truth about the causes of the disaster . Guardian. September 12, 2012. Retrieved September 13, 2012.
- ^ Owen Gibson: High court quashes Hillsborough inquest verdicts . Guardian. December 19, 2012. Retrieved December 20, 2012.
- ↑ David Conn, Hillsborough families' 27-year struggle for truth vindicated in: The Guardian , April 26, 2016, accessed April 27, 2016
- ↑ How the Hillsborough inquest jury ruled on the 14 key questions in: The Guardian, April 26, 2016, accessed April 27, 2016
- ↑ David Conn, Hillsborough inquests: former police chief Could face prosecution in: The Guardian, April 26, 2016 Retrieved on April 27, 2016
- ↑ Heather Stewart, Vikram Dodd, Hillsborough disaster: those responsible could face charges, says May
- ^ Vikram Dodd, Heather Stewart, South Yorkshire police chief suspended after Hillsborough verdict in: The Guardian, April 27, 2016, accessed April 28, 2016
- ↑ After 28 years of indictment, 28 June 2017
- ^ Hillsborough disaster: six people, including David Duckenfield, charged. theguardian.com, June 28, 2017, accessed June 29, 2017 .
- ↑ Hillsborough: Six people including match commander and ex-police chief face charges over disaster ( English ) The Telegraph. June 28, 2017. Retrieved June 29, 2017.
- ^ Emotional Hillsborough trial in Warrington. In: handelsblatt.com. August 9, 2017, archived from the original on August 9, 2017 ; accessed on August 10, 2017 .
- ↑ 30 years after the Hillsborough disaster, the police chief of operations is brought to justice on nachrichten.at, accessed on April 15, 2019.
- ↑ David Conn, How the Sun's 'truth' about Hillsborough unraveled , in: The Guardian, April 26, 2016, accessed April 27, 2016
- ↑ Lisa O'Carroll: Hillsborough: MacKenzie offers 'profuse apologies' for Sun front page . Guardian. September 12, 2012. Retrieved September 13, 2012.
- ↑ Sun and Times front pages criticized for ignoring Hillsborough verdict in: The Guardian, April 27, 2016, accessed April 27, 2016
- ↑ Jane Martinson, Times admits Hillsborough 'mistake' after protest prompts front page change in: The Guardian, April 27, 2016, accessed April 27, 2016
- ↑ Manics slated for Hillsborough song , BBC. August 26, 1998. Retrieved January 30, 2009.
- ↑ "You'll never walk alone": an honor for BVB fans. kicker.de, January 9, 2017, accessed June 22, 2017 .