The 96 Liverpool fans who died in the Hillsborough football stadium disaster, during a 1989 FA Cup semi-final between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest, were unlawfully killed, a jury concluded on Tuesday, finding Britain’s worst sporting tragedy was partly down to police errors.
After hearing evidence for two years, jurors concluded that policing decisions at the ill-fated match in 1989 “caused or contributed” to the deaths, and amounted to “gross negligence”.
Relatives of the victims have fought a 27-year campaign to get to the heart of what happened during the disaster, and were incensed by a 1991 inquest ruling the deaths were accidental.
There were shouts of “Yes!” in court when the jury’s verdicts were delivered, with people jumping to their feet. Many emerged from the courtroom hugging and in tears. They linked hands and sang the Liverpool Football Club anthem “You’ll Never Walk Alone” and chanted “Justice for the 96!”.
