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Harry Dunn's family can bring civil claim against Anne Sacoolas, US court rules

Mr Dunn died after a collision with Mrs Sacoolas's car in 2019.

By Tim Baker, news reporter

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Tuesday 16 February 2021 19:36, UK

Anne Sacoolas claimed diplomatic immunity and left for the US in the wake of Harry Dunn's death
Image: Anne Sacoolas claimed diplomatic immunity and left for the US in the wake of Harry Dunn's death
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A civil claim against Anne Sacoolas brought by the family of Harry Dunn in the US can go ahead, a judge has ruled.

Mrs Sacoolas had appealed to have the case dismissed on the grounds that it should be heard in the UK.

However, Judge Thomas Ellis ruled in a court at the eastern district of Virginia that the claim can go ahead in the US.

Judge Ellis took into account a letter submitted by Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab which stated: "I strongly support (the Dunn family's) right to bring the case."

Harry Dunn, 19, died after a collision between his motorbike and Mrs Sacoolas' car outside RAF Croughton in Northamptonshire in August 2019.

The 43-year-old then left the UK and returned to the US after the US State Department asserted diplomatic immunity on her behalf.

She was then charged with causing the teenager's death by dangerous driving, but an extradition request was rejected by the US government in January 2020.