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In the immediate wake of the Hillsborough disaster, grieving friends and family of the 96 victims were confronted with a new horror: the wholesale victim-blaming and lack of accountability by certain politicians, members of the police force, and the media outlets. For more than a quarter century, Liverpool supporters have been fighting these vicious accusations, and today the courts confirmed what we've known for a long time: the 96 were victims of a horrible, unnecessary, and preventable tragedy. The 96 were not the cause of their own demise, but the result of a horrible combination of circumstances, up to and including the police force who were directly responsible for ensuring their safety.
The jury sided with Liverpool in every question asked, most importantly:
- Liverpool fans were unlawfully killed, and were not to blame for the disaster.
- Police failed to properly plan and prepare for the semifinal.
- Police response was "slow and uncoordinated."
- Commanding officers failed to recognize the pens were at capacity, and their errors contributed to the crush.
- The design and layout of holding pens three and four were not compliant with safety regulations.
- Police and ambulance officers failed to recognize the scale of the problem, which led to critical delays.
There was applause outside for this banner pic.twitter.com/tT0twJx5T9
— Lorna Hughes (@lorna_hughes) April 26, 2016
Echo comment: "Twenty seven years of waiting, hoping and praying - for a day like this." https://t.co/CGUTr8GN4x #JFT96 #Hillsborough
— Liverpool Echo (@LivEchonews) April 26, 2016
— Peter Reid (@reid6peter) April 26, 2016