A former police chief will not be prosecuted over alleged lies he told following the Hillsborough disaster.
Sir Norman Bettison, who was a chief inspector of South Yorkshire Police at the time of the tragedy in 1989, had been due to face trial next year.
He was accused of untruthfully describing his role in the response as “peripheral” in a comment to then chief inspector of constabulary Sir David O’Dowd, in 1998, when he applied for the job of chief constable in Merseyside.
Sir Norman, the former Merseyside and West Yorkshire chief constable, had been charged with four counts of misconduct in a public office.
But at a Preston Crown Court hearing on Tuesday, the Crown Prosecution Service said the proceedings would be discontinued.
In a statement, the CPS said there was “no longer a realistic prospect of conviction” following a “number of significant developments” in the available evidence.
“These include changes in the evidence of two witnesses and the death of a third witness,” Sue Hemming, CPS director of legal services, said.
She added: “I appreciate this news will be disappointing for the families and the CPS will meet with them in person to explain the decision.”
Sir Norman was also accused of lying to Merseyside Police Authority when he said he had never attempted to shift blame for the disaster “on to the shoulders of Liverpool supporters”.
He was alleged to have lied in a statement issued in September 2012, following the publication of the Hillsborough Independent Panel report, when he said he had never offered any interpretation other than that the behaviour of Liverpool fans did not cause the disaster.
And he was accused of misconduct over a statement released the following day in which he said he had never “besmirched” Liverpool fans.
Sir Norman was charged after the Independent Police Complaints Commission carried out the biggest criminal investigation into alleged police misconduct ever carried out in England and Wales.
Five other men, including Hillsborough match commander David Duckenfield, are due to face trial for offences related to the disaster next year.
Additional reporting by Press Association
