Harry Dunn: Coroner criticizes US government for lack of driver training for Americans on base near where teen died

The coroner investigating the death of Harry Dunn has recommended better driver training for Americans at the RAF base near where the 19-year-old was killed.

Mr Dunn was hit by a Volvo driven by Anne Sacoolas in August 2019, after driving on the wrong side of the B4031 in Northamptonshire while riding a motorbike.

He died in hospital the same day.

The coroner concluded Mr Dunn died as a result of a road traffic accident and issued three Prevent Future Death Notices in a bid to prevent similar tragedies from happening again.

Analysis: Harry's family still have questions about the accident – but the killer remained in the shadows

Two death warnings have been sent to the UK Department of Health due to the drugs paramedics carry and overloaded ambulance services.

A third notice has been issued to the Foreign Office and the Ministry of Defense regarding driver training at RAF Croughton.

Sacoolas, a US government employee, was based at the RAF station – also used by US forces – at the time of the accident.

Northamptonshire coroner Anne Pember criticized the US government for the lack of training given to Sacoolas before the accident.

Harry Dunn's family responds

Neither Sacoolas nor U.S. Embassy officials attended the investigation, prompting Dunn family spokesman Radd Seiger to state that the U.S. government's position was that “the lives of citizens “British people like Harry ultimately don't matter.”

He said: “It was not enough for them to kill Harry. It was not enough for them to kick Harry's family in their darkest hour and seek to deny and delay the justice they had right.”

Speaking to Sky News after the inquest, Harry's mother Charlotte Charles said the family was “relieved”, “proud” and “tired”.

Asked if she thought she would ever see Sacoolas face to face, Ms Charles said the American “doesn't have it in her”.

“She’s just a coward,” she said. “Unfortunately, that's the only word I can sum up. We are disgusted. Disappointed is not far off.”

Ms Charles criticized Sacoolas for “snubbing” not only Harry's family, but also the coroner.

“It’s just extremely “It’s hard for me to understand that she is a mother of three herself,” she added.

“She really could have had the chance to redeem herself a little this week and show us she really did it care.”

If she ever had the chance to have a conversation with Sacoolas, she would have wanted her to show remorse.

“We understand that you have done a horrible mistake in your conduct that night,” she said.

“You drive, we can forgive… run away, we can't forgive. I couldn't have done that.”

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Mr Seiger also said Labour, if it came to power, had promised the family a public inquiry into how Sacoolas was able to leave the country with diplomatic immunity after causing Harry's death.

“We will not let [the US government] we can get through this and we look forward to working with the next government to establish this public inquiry,” he said.

“As a nation, we were all horrified at how the US government treated Harry's family. This must never happen again.

“The American national anthem ends 'Land of the free, home of the brave.' They have not shown an ounce of courage, choosing instead to run, hide and obstruct.”

The testimonies of Anne Sacoolas

Evidence and two witness statements from Sacoolas were read during the inquest after the US government employee rejected the coroner's invitation to attend in person.

In one of the Sacoolas statements apologized for 'tragic mistake' she said on the day of the accident and said it was something that would be with her “every day for the rest of my life.”

She said that when she left RAF Croughton, turning left, she instinctively moved to the right side of the road as she was “used to driving in the States”.

She also told Northamptonshire Police in a voluntary interview two months after the crash that she was a “careful driver” but “drove like an American and drove on the American side of the road”.

The 45-year-old said she had received no training on driving on British roads after arriving in the country and after the crash she “hysterically alerted a motorist” and “begged her to 'acquire help”.

“Not a day goes by that I don’t think of Harry, and I am deeply sorry for the pain I have caused,” Sacoolas said in the statement.

Reacting to these statements, Mr. Seiger said: “We have heard most of this before.

“Why on earth is Sacoolas not present in court to answer questions from the court and the family?”

Sacoolas left Britain 19 days after the accident, after the US State Department asserted diplomatic immunity on his behalf.

In December 2022, after a long battle for justice from the family, she appeared before a judge at the Old Bailey High Court via video link from the United States, when she pleaded guilty to causing death by reckless driving.

The State Department advised Sacoolas against attending his sentencing hearing, prompting the Dunn family to say they were “horrified” that the U.S. government was “actively interfering in our criminal justice system.” .

She was sentenced to eight months in prisonsuspended for one year.

The inquest also heard evidence from Mr Dunn twin brother Niall who described him as “an extraordinary person” who helped him when he found life difficult.

In a video played at the inquest, he said: “I couldn't have asked for a better brother, but beyond that, just a better person who you just have to force yourself to know.”

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