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| IPCC will not investigate David Crompton complaint | IPCC will not investigate David Crompton complaint |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| A complaint against the suspended South Yorkshire Police chief David Crompton over alleged instructions to his legal team at the Hillsborough inquests will not be investigated. | A complaint against the suspended South Yorkshire Police chief David Crompton over alleged instructions to his legal team at the Hillsborough inquests will not be investigated. |
| The Independent Police Complaints Commission said Mr Crompton was alleged to have told lawyers to "pour blame" on Liverpool fans at the hearings. | The Independent Police Complaints Commission said Mr Crompton was alleged to have told lawyers to "pour blame" on Liverpool fans at the hearings. |
| Families of some of the victims had lodged the complaint. | Families of some of the victims had lodged the complaint. |
| The inquests concluded 96 Liverpool fans were unlawfully killed. | The inquests concluded 96 Liverpool fans were unlawfully killed. |
| Mr Crompton was suspended in April following the conclusion of the inquests over "an erosion of trust". | |
| The commission, which acts as the national police watchdog, said an investigation would be "significantly hampered" because a legal principle of confidentiality would prevent it from reviewing communications between Mr Crompton and his legal team. | The commission, which acts as the national police watchdog, said an investigation would be "significantly hampered" because a legal principle of confidentiality would prevent it from reviewing communications between Mr Crompton and his legal team. |
| The force declined a request from the Independent Police Complaints Commission to waive legal professional privilege, which makes communication between lawyers and their clients confidential. | The force declined a request from the Independent Police Complaints Commission to waive legal professional privilege, which makes communication between lawyers and their clients confidential. |
| "Insufficient evidence" | |
| In 2012, Mr Crompton apologised to the families of the 96 victims and Liverpool supporters at the 1989 FA Cup semi-final at Hillsborough after an independent panel found police "sought to deflect responsibility" on to the fans. | |
| But the families' claimed that, despite the public apology, he instructed his legal team to blame Liverpool fans in an effort to deflect attention from his force. | |
| The commission's deputy chair, Rachel Cerfontyne, said the "approach taken by some legal teams" at the inquests "clearly caused distress among those affected by the disaster". | |
| But she said the evidence it assessed "doesn't indicate that a criminal or misconduct offence has occurred". | |
| "This, combined with the fact we cannot review any legal instructions from Mr Crompton to his legal team, has led me to conclude that an IPCC investigation could not provide any meaningful response to the complaint," she said. | |
| Barristers for South Yorkshire Police (SYP) asked questions about fan behaviour but "these were infrequent" and there was "insufficient evidence" to suggest they were part of a "deliberate and concerted attempt by SYP to blame Liverpool fans", the commission found. |