U.S. rebuffs Britain's extradition request for diplomat's wife after fatal crash

 

Harry Dunn's mother Charlotte Charles poses in front of a banner outside the Buckingham Palace as people demonstrate during U.S. President Donald Trump's visit for NATO summit, in London, Britain December 3, 2019. REUTERS/Dylan Martinez

 

WASHINGTON/LONDON (Reuters) - The United States on Friday rejected a formal request from Britain for the extradition of a U.S. diplomat's wife who left the country last year after a road collision that killed 19-year-old Briton Harry Dunn.

 

British prosecutors are seeking the extradition of Anne Sacoolas over the crash last August in which Dunn was killed while riding his motorbike.

 

"Following the Crown Prosecution Service's charging decision, the Home Office has sent an extradition request to the United States for Anne Sacoolas on charges of causing death by dangerous driving," a UK Home Office spokesman said in a statement on Friday.

 

"This is now a decision for the U.S. authorities."

 

A U.S. State Department spokesman said Washington would not grant the request.

 

"Under the circumstances of this case, we strongly believe that an extradition request would be highly inappropriate," the spokesman said in a statement.

 

"The United States has been clear that, at the time the accident occurred, and for the duration of her stay in the UK, the driver in this case had status that conferred diplomatic immunities," the statement said.

 

"The use of an extradition treaty to attempt to return the spouse of a former diplomat by force would establish an extraordinarily troubling precedent," it said.

 

Dunn's family has said Sacoolas was driving on the wrong side of the road at the time of the crash near an air force base in central England used by the U.S. military.

 

Sacoolas, 42, was given diplomatic immunity and left Britain shortly after the accident. Her lawyer has said that she would not return voluntarily to Britain to possibly face jail for "a terrible but unintentional accident."

 

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said Sacoolas was wrong to use diplomatic immunity to leave Britain and has urged U.S. President Donald Trump to reconsider the U.S. position.

 

Dunn's parents met Trump at the White House in October. Trump hoped to persuade them meet to Sacoolas, who was in the building at the same time, but they declined.

 

(Reporting by Alistair Smout in London and Eric Beech in Washington; additional reporting by David Brunnstrom; Editing by Bill Berkrot and Tom Brown)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2020-01-11

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At the very least they should chuck her husband out too, assuming he hasn't already left uk and take a good look at how others were swept under the 'diplomatic' umbrella simply for working on an RAF base.

29 minutes ago, rooster59 said:

The use of an extradition treaty to attempt to return the spouse of a former diplomat by force would establish an extraordinarily troubling precedent," it said.

Yeah, wouldn’t want diplomatic staff to be held responsible for killing people. 

If she had stayed in the UK to be procecuted, she would probably have received a two year suspended prison sentence with immediate deportation to the US.

 

He panic reaction to what she did, means she will probably be a fugitive for the rest of her life.

 

Sadly the family of the victim will never receive justice.

 

2 hours ago, rooster59 said:

the driver in this case had status that conferred diplomatic immunities,

Looks like this driver had also received moral and conscientious immunities. Must have been a package deal...

I understand why diplomatic immunity is an important principle, to prevent trumped up charges with no basis in fact.

That isn't the case in this situation.

She should return to UK to face the legitimate charges

As I understand it there is a question about when she was given diplomatic immunity. Did she have it before the accident or was she given it after the accident?

53 minutes ago, Emdog said:

I understand why diplomatic immunity is an important principle, to prevent trumped up charges with no basis in fact.

That isn't the case in this situation.

She should return to UK to face the legitimate charges

And the fact that it is her husband who is the diplomat!!!!And her driving on the wrong side of the road!! Disgraceful abuse of a system!

In my mind the woman should never have been entitled to DI.

 

If her husband is a diplomat then that's fair enough but why should she be entitled to live here and break every law in the land if she pleases without any consequences at all.

 

It's not like she stole a packet of wine gums.....she killed a young man who had his whole life in front of him because she forgot that she had to drive on what was the "wrong" side of the road for her.

 

It's disgraceful that the Americans will not return her to face trial

The UK should send a deadly drone to her house. The US government will understand ????

At least put her on a notice for Interpol so she won't be able to travel outside the US anymore.

It seems that she was given diplomatic immunity after she killed the motorcyclist. Just an excuse to get her out of the country. So much for the special relationship between the US and the UK. 

Time for the UK to tighten up on diplomatic immunity with US. These so-called' diplomats' park all over London and won't pay fines, won't pay the congestion charge etc etc. They don't behave decently....try that in NYC and you'll end up in jail, strip searched diplomatic immunity or not....just ask the Indians.

 

I read that this woman was the wife of a low level analyst not even based in the embassy, but based on an airbase in the north. Why does such a person have any immunity at all?

 

Britain has made a mistake with the extradition treaty that it signed after 9/11. It needs to be reviewed as it has been abused by the US.

Simple answer is do a swap the US are desperate to get there hands on Mr Assange otherwise tell them it’s a No No . When I was posted to the British Embassy in Washington DC in the 80s had my wife been involved in a similar incident she would of had to face the consequences of the American Justice System.

4 minutes ago, Purdey said:

It seems that she was given diplomatic immunity after she killed the motorcyclist. Just an excuse to get her out of the country. So much for the special relationship between the US and the UK. 

So this is how the 'special relationship' works - in this case Britain should refuse to extradite Julian Assange.

15 minutes ago, Pedrogaz said:

..try that in NYC and you'll end up in jail, strip searched diplomatic immunity or not

Wrong. Read the first sentence in the link
https://jalopnik.com/diplomatic-immunity-wont-save-you-from-parking-tickets-1826861102

3 hours ago, Bluespunk said:

4 hours ago, rooster59 said:

The use of an extradition treaty to attempt to return the spouse of a former diplomat by force would establish an extraordinarily troubling precedent," it said.

Yeah, wouldn’t want diplomatic staff to be held responsible for killing people. 

It's unfortunate but, especially in the case of an accident, I doubt that diplomats of any country would want the reciprocal action that this could start if the US had agreed, including UK diplomats overseas.  We may not like it but that's the situation for diplomatic immunity worldwide that every country benefits from.

 

In the case of a deliberate killing, I.e. murder, the answer from the US may have been very different.

1 hour ago, DPKANKAN said:

And the fact that it is her husband who is the diplomat!!!!

The fact is that she also has that status because of her husband!  It applies to all diplomats and their spouses.

I read that her husband is an intelligence officer who doesn't have diplomatic privileges, and neither did she, she was given the status after the accident and flown out by the us airforce, obviously to escape her fat <deleted> for justice. What a shower of wxxxxxkers the US admin are. Hopefully they put out a red notice via interpol so she can't travel outside US anymore.

10 minutes ago, Just Weird said:

It's unfortunate but, especially in the case of an accident, I doubt that diplomats of any country would want the reciprocal action that this could start if the US had agreed, including UK diplomats overseas.  We may not like it but that's the situation for diplomatic immunity worldwide that every country benefits from.

 

In the case of a deliberate killing, I.e. murder, the answer from the US may have been very different.

As far as I’m concerned, everyone should be responsible for their actions. Accidental or not, there have to be consequences if an individual’s actions lead to the death of another. 

49 minutes ago, FritsSikkink said:

At least put her on a notice for Interpol so she won't be able to travel outside the US anymore.

Does the term "diplomatic relations" mean anything to you?

5 minutes ago, Tbone999 said:

I read that her husband is an intelligence officer who doesn't have diplomatic privileges, and neither did she, she was given the status after the accident 

Did you read that on the internet by any chance?  Must be correct if you did.  

10 minutes ago, Bluespunk said:

As far as I’m concerned, everyone should be responsible for their actions. Accidental or not, there have to be consequences if an individual’s actions lead to the death of another. 

I agree with you, but that's just not the case when diplomatic immunity is concerned, morality doesn't come into it, whether we like it or not.

 

And, I'm sure that your reaction, and your actions, would be exactly the same if you were a diplomat.

9 minutes ago, Just Weird said:

I agree with you, but that's just not the case when diplomatic immunity is concerned, morality doesn't come into it, whether we like it or not.

He was not a diplomat. He was an intelligence officer which gives priveleges under the geneva convention but a diplomat he was not. It is not clear if his wife has any such immunity under her husbands privilege.

 

But. She certainly does not have diplomatic immunity in the US, she can only claim that in UK. So she should be brought to court to argue she is entitled during extradition proceedings.

 

Edit: immunity is for the uk to give, not the US to say it is.

10 minutes ago, Just Weird said:

I agree with you, but that's just not the case when diplomatic immunity is concerned, morality doesn't come into it, whether we like it or not.

 

And, I'm sure that your reaction, and your actions, would be exactly the same if you were a diplomat.

It shouldn’t be up to me whether I face the consequences or not.
 

I understand and fully accept your point that diplomatic immunity is there for a reason, but believe that if evidence is presented that makes clear an offence, as serious as this one, has been committed, it should be waived. 

 

I’m also not naive enough to believe that will ever happen. 

Disgraceful but hardly surprising. 

1 hour ago, crazykopite said:

When I was posted to the British Embassy in Washington DC in the 80s had my wife been involved in a similar incident she would of had to face the consequences of the American Justice System.

Rightly so!  Sacoolas would have done the same in The UK.  But, she scarpered like a rat up a drainpipe, with the help of the diplomatic cover-up brigade.

 

1 hour ago, Purdey said:

It seems that she was given diplomatic immunity after she killed the motorcyclist. Just an excuse to get her out of the country. So much for the special relationship between the US and the UK. 

It's not about that. Trump is loyal only to Trump and by extension, those who support him. If this had been any other recent president, you can bet that she'd be in England awaiting trial.

2 hours ago, Purdey said:

It seems that she was given diplomatic immunity after she killed the motorcyclist. Just an excuse to get her out of the country. So much for the special relationship between the US and the UK. 

AS my father always used to say "When you have the yanks as your friends you dont need enemies"!

They should have confiscated her passport. She could always escape in a diplomatic pouch, though.