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Who is David Duckenfield and why is he charged over the Hillsborough disaster

Former Chief Superintendent David Duckenfield is facing 95 individual charges of manslaughter in relation to the Hillsborough tragedy in 1989.

On Wednesday, Sue Hemming, head of the special crime and counter-terrorism at the Crown Prosecution Service announced that Duckenfield was being charged the manslaughter by gross negligence of 95 of the 96 killed.

He joined four other officials who were also charged.

Who is David Duckenfield?

Duckenfield, 72, joined South Yorkshire Police as a cadet when he was just 16-years-old.

The officer climbed the ranks of the force and was made a superintendent in 1983 - 20 years after he first joined.

David Duckenfield is facing 95 charged of manslaughter (Peter Byrne/PA )
David Duckenfield is facing 95 charged of manslaughter (Peter Byrne/PA )

Duckenfield, who now lives in rural Dorset, was promoted to chief superintendent three weeks before Hillsborough.

He was the match commander for the force – making him the most senior officer there.

He continued working for the force until 1991 when he was suspended and later retired, on a police pension, due to ill-health

What role did he play in the tragedy?

Duckenfield ordered for Gate C to be opened before kick-off to prevent overcrowding outside the turnstile.

In doing so, 2,000 more fans were able to swarm into central pens and into the stadium – which became the site of a human crush.

During an inquest into the disaster, held in 2015, Duckenfield conceded that his decision to open the gate had contributed to the deaths of fans.

The former officer admitted to Paul Greaney QC he “froze” in the moment.

On charging Duckenfield, the CPS spokeswoman said: “We will allege that David Duckenfield's failures to discharge his personal responsibility were extraordinarily bad and contributed substantially to the deaths of each of those 96 people who so tragically and unnecessarily lost their lives.”

Why is he not being charged with all 96 deaths?

One of the victims, Anthony Bland, died almost four years after the tragedy which, due to laws at the time of his death, mean Duckenfield cannot be charged for it.

Mr Bland, known as Tony, suffered severe brain damage in the incident, leaving him unresponsive.

His life support was withdrawn after an application was made to the High Court requesting him to be allowed to “die with dignity”.

The CPS statement reads: “We are unable to charge the manslaughter of Anthony Bland, the 96th casualty, as he died almost four years later.

“The law as it applied then provided that no person could be guilty of homicide where the death occurred more than a year and a day later than the date when the injuries were caused.”

How has the investigation unfolded?

Following an initial inquest verdict of “accidental death”, a Hillsborough Independent Panel report – published in 2012 – criticised that the blame had been put on fans.

Later the same year, the police watchdog (Independent Police Complaints Commission) launched an investigation into the conduct of officers in the aftermath of the Hillsborough disaster.

And Operation Resolve was launched to examine the preparations leading up to the 1989 FA Cup semi-final and the events of the day itself.

In December 2012 the High Court quashed the accidental death verdicts in the original inquests and orders new ones and Theresa May, who was Home Secretary at the time, announced a new criminal probe to investigate "all of the people and organisations involved - before, on, and after" the disaster.

In April 2016 the inquest delivered a verdict finding that 96 Liverpool fans were unlawfully killed.

The IPCC and Operation Resolve passed files of evidence relating to 23 suspects, including individuals and organisations, to the CPS earlier this year.

Who else is charged in relation with the tragedy?

Former chief constable Sir Norman Bettison is charged with four offences of misconduct in public office.

The CPS said these relate to telling alleged lies about his involvement in the aftermath of Hillsborough and the culpability of fans.

Former chief superintendent Donald Denton is charged with doing acts with intent to pervert the course of public justice relating to material changes made to witness statements.

It is alleged that Denton oversaw the process of amending the statements and, in doing so, he did acts that had a tendency to pervert the course of public justice, the CPS said.

Former detective chief inspector Alan Foster is charged with the same as Denton, with the CPS arguing he was central to the process of changing statements.

Graham Mackrell, who was the company secretary and safety officer of Sheffield Wednesday – the club hosting the match - is charged with two offences of contravening a term of condition of a safety certificate contrary to the Safety of Sports Grounds Act 1975.

He is also charged with one offence of failing to take reasonable care for the health and safety of other persons who may have been affected by his acts or omissions at work under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974.

And Peter Metcalf, who was the solicitor acting for South Yorkshire Police during the initial Taylor Inquiry and the first inquests, is charged with doing acts with intent to pervert the course of public justice relating to material changes made to witness statements.

The CPS said Metcalf was instructed by Municipal Mutual Insurance to represent the interests of the police force at the Taylor Inquiry and in any civil litigation that might result from the Hillsborough disaster.

He reviewed the accounts provided by the officers and made suggestions for alterations, deletions and amendments, which prosecutors allege were directly relevant to an official letter issued by the Taylor Inquiry and for which there appears to be no justification.