Hillsborough disaster: 'I support campaign' to correct teenage daughters' death records, says police chief

Teenage sisters Victoria and Sarah Hicks were among the 97 Liverpool supporters killed in the 1989 Hillsborough disaster on April 15, 1989.

This week, their parents announced a new campaign to correct the official court records, which wrongly state their daughters lost consciousness within 30 seconds and died a short time later, when in fact they suffered much longer.

Critically, the record cannot be officially corrected without the consent of South Yorkshire Police (SYP), which Jenni and her former husband Trevor Hicks say they have not received so far.

The parents’ legal teams say the couple is “infuriated” and challenged SYP to take a “simple and straightforward” route to fix the records by agreeing to testify in open court - which they have not done.

Now, SYP Chief Constable Lauren Poultney has released a statement to say the force does not believe testifying this way, in what is known as a Statement in Open Court (SOIC), will achieve the family’s goals - but that she supports the campaign’s goals.

Chf Con Poultney said in a statement: “It is understandable that Hillsborough families, the general public, the media, and politicians have questions about why South Yorkshire Police has not, thus far, consented to a SIOC to support Mr and Mrs Hicks in their fight to achieve a sense of justice.

“To my knowledge, there is no legislation enabling the use of a SIOC in this type of matter, and a SIOC would not overturn the House of Lords' judgement, or amend the records.

"However, my commitment remains that, under my leadership, South Yorkshire Police will do everything in our power to support the Hillsborough families, who have endured unimaginable levels of heartbreak and suffering in the 36 years since the disaster.

“Furthermore, in keeping with this promise, the force has made contact with Mr and Mrs Hicks’ legal representatives to try to understand how they envision a SIOC could be used to correct the records held by the House of Lords.

"I truly hope that a viable route will be found and give my assurances that I support their campaign to correct the records.”

It comes after Chf Con Poultney and SYP were heavily criticised at an event at the House of Lords on Monday, February 9. The Chief Constable was invited but did not attend, and an apology by the force was read out instead.

Among those supporting the ‘Hicks’ Rule’ campaign are former Conservative Prime Minister, Theresa May who met Trevor and Jenni shortly before the event.

Baroness May said: “After everything that Trevor and Jenni Hicks have been through, it beggars belief that all these years later they are still having to fight to have the truth acknowledged as to what happened to their daughters that day. South Yorkshire Police must see that this is another disgraceful example of the evasion and obfuscation of the last four decades.

“Surely, at some point, this must stop and I would urge South Yorkshire Police to see sense and agree to a statement in court clarifying what the truth is regarding the death of Sarah and Victoria. This will help not just Trevor and Jenni but any other families in the future who may find themselves in a similar position.”

Andy Burnham, Mayor of Greater Manchester, also attended the event, and said: “Why are these parents still in this place having to argue about the truth about what happened to their daughters? You can’t help but think that we still have a problematic issue with truth in this country.

“How can any public body, particularly a police force, allow a false public record? Surely now we've got to the point when they should be immediately writing to Trevor and Jenni to say they will testify in open court to correct it. Otherwise, the words are hollow."

Ninety-seven Liverpool supporters were unlawfully killed at the FA Cup semi-final on 15 April 1989 , after police opened an exit gate to relieve crowding outside the stadium and failed to divert fans away from the tunnel leading to the central pens, where the fatal crush occurred.

The Hillsborough Independent Panel and subsequent inquests found that the suggestion victims lost consciousness within seconds was flawed.

The assumption - dubbed "the 30-second rule" - was used in post-disaster cases and presumed victims lost consciousness almost immediately, including in a 1990s test case brought by the Hicks family.

Their claim for damages against South Yorkshire Police was dismissed at multiple levels, culminating in a rejection by the House of Lords.

Indeed, in the early 1990s, Jenni and Trevor brought a test case against South Yorkshire Police on behalf of their daughters’ estates, arguing that the girls had endured pain and suffering before death.

That case was rejected at every level, culminating in 1992 in a ruling by five Law Lords in the House of Lords on the basis that the girls were assumed to have been unconscious within 30 seconds and dead within minutes.

They are now calling for the introduction of a "Hicks Rule", to make it easier for people in similar circumstances to correct the official legal record.

Jenni Hicks said: "For more than three decades, the law has recorded something about our daughters that we now know simply isn't true.

"This isn't about compensation. It's about truth. It's about dignity. And it's about acknowledging what Sarah and Vicki - and so many others - went through that devastating day."

Victoria, aged 15, was the only female child victim of the crush and was reported by multiple witnesses to be crying and in distress for some time.

Her older sister, Sarah, 19, was also spotted by numerous witnesses, distressed about the fate of her younger sister.

Mr Hicks has described travelling to hospital with Victoria while Sarah was still receiving treatment on the pitch.

He and Ms Hicks will attend a parliamentary event on Monday alongside legal experts, peers, and MPs, to review the situation.

Caoilfhionn Gallagher KC, lead counsel for the Hicks, says the case raises issues that go far beyond Hillsborough.

She said: "This is about whether the legal system has the courage and the mechanisms to correct itself when later evidence proves earlier assumptions to be false,

"The findings of the Hillsborough Independent Panel and the fresh inquests are unequivocal. This was not a 'swift and sudden death' for Sarah and Victoria - far from it.

"For an agonising hour they suffered prolonged pain and suffering. And yet the formal legal record remains unchanged."