Harry Dunn death: Sacoolas drove on 'wrong side of road for 20 seconds'
Lawyers acting on behalf of Harry Dunn’s alleged killer Anne Sacoolas have said she drove on the “wrong side of the road for 20 seconds” before the fatal crash.
Legal representatives for the 43year-old issued a public statement on Thursday detailing her side of the story, in which they claim she was “otherwise driving cautiously and below the speed limit”.
Her lawyers said that the American had only been living in the UK for three weeks and “instinctively” began driving on the right hand side. They said she could not see the teenager due to “the crest of a small hill”.
Reacting to the suspect’s statement and speaking on behalf of the 19-year-old’s family, their spokesman Radd Seiger told the PA news agency: “The parents have noted the statement issued this evening on behalf of Sacoolas. Their position is that these issues should not be aired in any form other than a court of law. Once again, they invite her to do the right thing and return to the UK to answer to the charges laid against her.”
The motorcyclist was killed in the crash outside RAF Croughton in Northamptonshire in August last year – a US military base where the suspect’s husband worked as an intelligence official.
The US authorities asserted that Sacoolas had diplomatic immunity and, according to her lawyers, “determined that it would be difficult for her and her family to remain in the small Croughton community”.
Dunn’s alleged killer returned to the US on a commercial flight after the US embassy “informed the Foreign Office of this decision and instructed Anne to return home”.
Sacoolas was charged with causing death by dangerous driving in December but an extradition request submitted by the Home Office was refused in January. The US State Department have since said the decision to reject the request was “final”.
In a public statement, Sacoolas’s lawyers said: “Anne did everything she could to assist Harry. After the accident, she ran from her car and tried to help him.
“Anne then saw another motorist approach and flagged her down for more support.
“The other motorist immediately called for the emergency services and Anne made calls to alert the police from the nearby air force base.
“The base police arrived quickly and assisted Harry.
“Tragically, it took over 40 minutes for the ambulance to arrive and nearly two hours passed before Harry was admitted to the hospital.
“Anne did not leave the scene until she was instructed to do so by the UK authorities.”
Sacoolas’s legal representatives also made an on-the-record statement regarding her position on the prospect of a virtual trial.
They said: “We have been and remain willing to discuss a resolution, including the possibility of virtual proceedings, with the UK authorities.
“Anne has never tried to avoid being held accountable for the tragic accident and she would like nothing more than to find a path forward and to provide the family some measure of peace.”
On Wednesday, Dunn’s family filed a federal lawsuit in the United States against Sacoolas.
The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Virginia, claims wrongful death and seeks financial damages.
It alleges that she did not call an ambulance and left him injured in the road.