Two wrong-way traffic violations near a base housing U.S. personnel in England prompted British police to demand a meeting with a U.S. commander.
Northamptonshire Police Chief Nick Adderley said his department has learned about poor driving near a base where an American driver killed a British teen last year. Adderley said he has fielded reports of one wrong-way-driver collision and one near miss that took place near RAF Croughton, an English base used by the U.S. military and American diplomats.
A road near Croughton was the scene of the accident that killed 19-year-old Harry Dunn. Anne Sacoolas, the wife of an American intelligence official, struck and killed Dunn while he was riding his motorcycle near the base. Sacoolas fled the country and claimed diplomatic immunity to avoid charges connected to Dunn’s death.
The police chief asked U.S. officials Saturday to discuss the issue, saying, “I want to be absolutely clear on the fact that these incidents just cannot keep happening. We know all too well in the case of young Harry just how devastating they can be.”
It is not yet clear if both incidents involved Americans, but the vehicle involved in the near miss may have been a U.S. government vehicle. Neither incident resulted in injuries.
Sacoolas’s decision to leave the country outraged many, including Dunn’s parents. The Dunn family filed a lawsuit against Sacoolas and the Trump administration. Their spokesman, Radd Seiger, said, “We are bringing claims against both Mrs. Sacoolas in the U.S.A. for civil damages, as well as the Trump administration for their lawless misconduct and attempt to cover that up.”
“No one is above the law and the family are determined to ensure that this never happens to another family again,” Sieger said. ”It will be Harry’s memorial. His legacy. The Trump administration is not only hellbent on breaking international laws, rules, and conventions on diplomatic immunity, but they have no care or concern for the welfare of Harry’s family or any real intent on finding a solution.”
The United Kingdom also filed an extradition request for Sacoolas, demanding that she return to England to face her charges. U.K. Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab denied Sacoolas’s claim to diplomatic immunity, saying, “The U.K. Government’s position is that immunity, and therefore any question of waiver, is no longer relevant in Mrs. Sacoolas’s case, because she has returned home.”
Sacoolas has not returned to the United Kingdom, but she did apologize to Dunn’s family. Her attorneys issued a statement, saying, “No loss compares to the death of a child and Anne extends her deepest sympathy to Harry Dunn’s family … She spoke with authorities at the scene of the accident and met with the Northampton police at her home the following day. She will continue to cooperate with the investigation.”
