David Duckenfield: why I lied about Hillsborough

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2015/mar/13/david-duckenfield-why-i-lied-about-hillsborough

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Several people whose family members died at Hillsborough in 1989 walked out of the new inquests into the disaster as the former policeman who commanded the FA Cup semi-final tried to explain why he had not told the truth for 26 years, and apologised again to them.

David Duckenfield, who as an inexperienced chief superintendent in the South Yorkshire police was in charge of the match between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest, admitted he had not told the whole truth about mistakes he made on the day, through a succession of legal inquiries since 1989.

He agreed with Michael Mansfield QC, representing 75 families whose relatives were killed in the lethal crush, that he was “practising and persisted in a far-reaching deceit” on the day, by lying to Football Association and football club officials about his actions. He admitted that until his evidence this week at these new inquests, he had not confessed to the series of mistakes he has now admitted.

Asked by Mansfield why he had “chosen to remain silent” for 26 years, Duckenfield said that he had been prompted to finally tell the whole truth after the publication of the report by the Hillsborough Independent Panel in 2012 and a television programme he had seen about the disaster’s effect on the families.

He said he had post traumatic stress disorder, and “hid myself away and could not bear the word Hillsborough” after the report was published, but then said he had begun to face the truth two years ago, with the help of doctors.

“I am now very much older, very much wiser and very much more understanding of the events of the day and have decided to tell the whole truth,” Duckenfield said.

He was asked whether he thought over the last 26 years about the bereaved families, who – according to their barrister, Rajiv Menon QC – waged a “courageous and unrelenting” campaign that culminated in 2012 with the quashing of the first inquests.

Duckenfield said he had watched a video about the disaster, including footage of a mother having to cuddle her dead child on the dirty floor of the Hillsborough gymnasium, which the police used as a mortuary that day.

“Sir, it is now that I have thought very seriously about the families,” Duckenfield said, explaining that the video was the most moving thing he had ever seen, and that it had shown him “what it means to a mother to lose a loved one”.

Addressing the families in the court he said: “It has now dawned on me what it means to you, and I am dreadfully sorry.”

Many of the bereaved family members, including mothers whose children were killed in the disaster, were crying as Duckenfield spoke. One called out in court “I don’t want your apology” and several walked out.

Duckenfield had agreed earlier that he had not acted as “a reasonably competent” match commander on the day, due to the mistakes he made.

He acknowledged that even after he said he realised, at 3:04pm on the day, that he was facing a medical emergency not an incident of disorder, he called for police dogs to come to the ground, not ambulances.

Answering questions from Mansfield, Duckenfield said, however, that he did believe Liverpool fans turned up late and drunk to the match, and that Merseyside police failed to tell the South Yorkshire force that Liverpool fans were in the habit of doing that.

Mansfield said: “But this isn’t what happened on this day, this wasn’t fans turning up late, having got into a drunken state, was it?”

Duckenfield responded: “I will have to disagree.”

Pressed on whether he had received any information in the buildup to the match that fans turned up drunk and late, he replied: “I can’t recall, sir.”

Evidence was put to Duckenfield, who had very limited experience of football policing before he was promoted to command the semi-final only 19 days earlier, from Colin Allen, a Merseyside policeman who went to the match as a Liverpool supporter and survived the crush.

Allen told the inquests last week that he had policed hundreds of football matches and attended thousands as a Liverpool fan. He described the policing outside the Leppings Lane turnstiles, where Duckenfield accepted the South Yorkshire police lost control at 2:40pm, as “non-existent or shambolic at best”.

Duckenfield responded: “Sir, I was not outside the turnstiles, but I am not in a position to dispute his view.”

After Duckenfield mentioned the contribution in the police control room of Bernard Murray, who was a superintendent but has since died, Menon asked him if he was seeking to blame other people.

“Sir, I am the man in overall control,” he replied. “I seek guidance from people with greater experience and expertise than me. But ultimately the buck stops with me.”

The inquests continue.