Harry Dunn crash: Mother 'will appeal to US president' Published duration 7 October 2019 Related Topics Harry Dunn crash

media caption Harry's mother, Charlotte Charles, and father, Tim Dunn plea for the return of fatal crash suspect

A mother whose son was allegedly killed in a crash involving a US diplomat's wife says, if necessary, she will ask President Trump to waive the woman's diplomatic immunity.

Motorcyclist Harry Dunn, 19, died in a collision with a car in Northamptonshire on 27 August.

Anne Sacoolas, who is a suspect in the investigation, left the UK despite telling police she had no such plans.

Mr Dunn's mother said the family would "do what we can to bring her back".

Northamptonshire's chief constable and police and crime commissioner have already urged the Americans to waive Ms Sacoolas's diplomatic immunity.

Under the 1961 Vienna Convention , diplomats and their family members are immune from prosecution in their host country, as long as they are not nationals of that country. However, their immunity can be waived by the state that has sent them.

'Dishonourable thing to do'

On Saturday, the US State Department said diplomatic immunity was "rarely waived".

UK Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab urged the US Embassy to reconsider.

Mr Dunn's mother, Charlotte Charles, said leaving the country was "such a dishonourable thing to do" and urged Ms Sacoolas to come back.

"We don't wish her any harm. She's a mum; we don't want to take her away from her kids either, but she's taken one of ours and she's taken my twin boys' twinship away," she told BBC 5 Live.

image copyright Family photo image caption Harry Dunn, from Charlton, Banbury, died in hospital after his motorbike was in a crash with a Volvo

Ms Charles said if the diplomatic waiver was declined then funds raised by friends and family would be used to go to Washington.

"We will go and see President Trump. We will ask him to waive it; we will ask him directly. We will do what we can to bring her back," she said.

If that failed, the family would campaign for a change in the law around diplomatic immunity, she said.

'Face us as a family'

"It's a horrible situation we're finding ourselves in, but if we sit back and do nothing and we don't at least try to bring her back to face justice or if we don't at least try and change the laws we could never live with ourselves if this happens to another family."

Northamptonshire's chief constable Nick Adderley said that "based on CCTV evidence", officers knew that "a vehicle alighted from the RAF base at Croughton" and was "on the wrong side of the road".

Ms Charles told the Victoria Derbyshire programme: "[It was] unintentional. She didn't purposely drive on the other side of the road... if she'd have stayed and faced us as a family we could have found that forgiveness... but forgiving her for leaving, I'm nowhere near."

Harry's father, Tim Dunn, said: "I'd like to think she was more made to leave by the US Embassy than [it be] her own choice."

Mr Adderley said he had written to the US Embassy in London urging it to waive diplomatic immunity.

He said both he and the county's Police and Crime Commissioner, Stephen Mold, had called for the waiver "in order to allow the justice process to take place".

The US State Department said it was in "close consultation" with British officials and has offered its "deepest sympathies" to the family of Mr Dunn.

image copyright Getty Images image caption The crash happened on the B4031 near RAF Croughton, Northamptonshire