The former South Yorkshire police chief superintendent who was in command of the 1989 FA Cup semi-final at Hillsborough, where 96 people were killed, will face a retrial on a charge of gross negligence manslaughter, a judge has ruled. Sir Peter Openshaw, who presided over the 10-week trial of Duckenfield earlier this year in which the jury failed to reach a verdict, handed down his ruling on Tuesday after the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) applied for a retrial. The new trial will be at Preston crown court on 7 October. Benjamin Myers QC, who conducted Duckenfield’s defence at the trial, had opposed the application. Richard Matthews QC, the lead barrister for the CPS, told Openshaw on the same day the jury failed to reach its verdict that the service intended to seek a retrial.

Source: The Guardian June 25, 2019 09:35 UTC