The family of Harry Dunn, who died in a road collision involving a US diplomat’s wife, has accused the US government of hindering the investigation into his death and expressed disappointment at the lack of cooperation during the recent inquest.
The family of Harry Dunn, a teenage motorcyclist killed in a 2019 road collision, has accused the US government of obstructing the inquest into his death. Harry Dunn, 19, died after a head-on collision with a car driven by Anne Sacoolas, the wife of a US diplomat stationed at RAF Croughton in Northamptonshire. Sacoolas fled to the US claiming diplomatic immunity and was later sentenced via video link to an eight-month suspended prison term for causing death by careless driving.
Sacoolas and US embassy representatives did not attend the recent four-day inquest. Charlotte Charles, Dunn’s mother, expressed her “disgust,” labeling their absence as “disrespectful.” Coroner Anne Pember criticized the lack of driver training for US diplomatic staff and recorded Dunn’s death as resulting from “injuries sustained during a head-on collision” with a car on the wrong side of the road.
Pember also issued preventative notices to the Health Secretary, Foreign Office, and Ministry of Defence about emergency services and the training of US drivers in the UK. The family’s spokesperson, Radd Seiger, indicated the family’s intent to work with the next UK government to establish a public inquiry into the incident and its handling.
