A coroner has criticized the US government for not providing sufficient training to Anne Sacoolas, a US government employee, which contributed to a fatal crash that killed 19-year-old motorcyclist Harry Dunn. The incident occurred in August 2019 outside RAF Croughton in Northamptonshire when Sacoolas, who was driving on the wrong side of the road, collided head-on with Dunn’s motorcycle.
The coroner, Anne Pember, highlighted that Dunn's death was due to injuries sustained during the collision. Following the accident, Sacoolas, who was the wife of a US diplomat stationed at the airbase, fled to the US claiming diplomatic immunity. She was later sentenced via video link in December 2022 to eight months in prison, suspended for a year, for causing death by careless driving.
Sacoolas did not attend the four-day inquest. Attempts to have her give live evidence under the condition that only the coroner could question her, not the Dunn family's lawyer, were rejected by the family. Sacoolas had previously offered an apology for her actions.
The family of Harry Dunn has accused the US government of obstructing the inquest, stating that representatives from the US embassy and Sacoolas herself were absent during the proceedings. The coroner issued three Prevention of Future Death notices related to the training of US personnel driving in the UK.