Southport attacks inquiry: First public hearing dates announced
The Liverpool Town Hall hearings will begin with Sir Adrian's opening statement at 14:00 BST.Evidence from four families whose children were injured in the knife attacks will be heard the following day. Sir Adrian previously presided over the 2021 trial of Metropolitan Police officer Wayne Couzens - who was sentenced to a whole-life tariff for the murder of Sarah Everard. Cooper said: "Sir Adrian Fulford will bring a wealth of legal and criminal justice expertise to this role, and I am pleased he has agreed to chair the inquiry."The home secretary said she hoped the public inquiry would "provide insights into any failings that allowed a young man with a previous history of violence to commit this horrendous attack".Cooper described "the brutal murder of three young girls" as an "unimaginable tragedy"."We owe it to their families - and all those affected on that terrible day - to quickly understand what went wrong, answer difficult questions and do everything in our power to prevent something like this from happening again", she said.
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