THE not guilty verdict on David Duckenfield will have devastated so many Hillsborough families, survivors and campaigners – here in Merseyside and beyond.
But amid this devastation, anger and heartbreak we must remember three things:
* The verdict does NOT change the inquest verdicts of unlawful killing, delivered on April 26, 2016.
* The verdict does NOT change the findings of the Hillsborough Independent Panel report, published on September 12, 2012.
* And the verdict does NOT change the fact that, while being questioned at the inquests on March 17, 2015, David Duckenfield agreed his failure to close a tunnel “was the direct cause of the deaths of 96 people.”
It could be argued that the fact ANY charges were brought following the inquests – and after all these years – was a modern-day miracle, and one brought about thanks to the monumental efforts of the Hillsborough families, survivors and campaigners.
They have been on a traumatic and tortuous journey since April 15, 1989, and had door after door slammed in their faces.
Their successes should never be underestimated.
In 1991, when the long-since discredited, accidental death verdicts were returned at the original inquests, who would have predicted those unlawful killing verdicts – which were given, amid emotional and unforgettable scenes, 25 years later?
And who would have expected to see David Duckenfield back in court, accused of manslaughter, 19 years after he walked away from Leeds Crown Court following the private prosecution brought by Hillsborough families?
It is a tribute to the dedication and determination of the Hillsborough families, survivors and campaigners that those second inquests took place, that Duckenfield made crucial admissions and that he was brought before Preston Crown Court this year.
There are, of course, people who haven’t been charged with anything. They know who they are and we know who they are – and that will always be the case.
The passing of so many years has made many things so frustratingly difficult – not least legally – as the Hillsborough picture has been distorted. But the world should look on in wonder at what the Hillsborough families, survivors and campaigners HAVE been able to achieve in the last 30 years.
That is why, amid the devastation, anger and heartbreak being felt today, there should be feelings of pride – pride at what has been achieved, against all the odds, in the names of the 96 men, women and children who needlessly died at Hillsborough.
Nothing can take that away – including this verdict.
