The public process to give those criticised in the Hillsborough investigations' report a chance to respond will begin this month.
The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) confirmed the long-awaited Salmon process will begin this month ahead of the publication of the final Hillsborough report. The IOPC began its investigation into the 1989 disaster, in which 97 Liverpool fans died at the FA Cup semi-final, after the publication of the Hillsborough Independent Panel report.
The ongoing investigation is the largest investigation into alleged police misconduct and criminality ever seen in England and Wales. The IOPC said in July last year it would start the Salmon process in 2023 - and a spokesperson for the police watchdog has now confirmed officers will begin sending 'Salmon letters' this month.
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The Salmon process, named after Lord Justice Salmon who first set out the principles in 1966, is a procedure that public inquiries apply to the publication of reports where individuals or organisations are criticised. Each person or body facing proposed criticism in the Hillsborough investigations' report are given the opportunity to respond prior to publication.
The police watchdog will begin contacting those identified, named and facing proposed criticisms this month. An IOPC spokesperson added officers have included more people and public bodies in the process than first anticipated following the advice of others previously involved in high profile enquiries.
The spokesperson said: "This includes those who have previously been served with a notice that they are being investigated. This is to ensure they are clear about the proposed criticisms we intend to publish, and what we are expecting them to consider when deciding whether they wish to respond to us.
"Recipients of ‘Salmon letters’ will receive a detailed summary of proposed criticisms, but they will not receive any supporting material, such as extracts from the Hillsborough investigations’ report."
Following the launch of the IOPC investigation, original inquest verdicts into the deaths were quashed. In 2016, new inquests found the victims were unlawfully killed and errors by both South Yorkshire Police and the ambulance service caused or contributed to their deaths.
The only person to be convicted as a result of the probes is former Sheffield Wednesday club secretary Graham Mackrell, who was fined £6,500 and ordered to pay £5,000 costs after he was found guilty of failing to ensure the health and safety of fans arriving at the ground. The match commander on the day, David Duckenfield, was charged with gross negligence manslaughter in 2017 but he was cleared in 2019 at a retrial, after the jury in his first trial was unable to reach a verdict.
Retired officers Donald Denton and Alan Foster and former force solicitor Peter Metcalf were acquitted of perverting the course of justice after a judge ruled there was no case to answer. Norman Bettison, a chief inspector in 1989 who went on to become chief constable of Merseyside and West Yorkshire, was charged with misconduct in a public office as part of the investigation but the charges were dropped in August 2018.
The IOPC has previously said it doesn't know how long the Salmon process will take.
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