Charlotte Charles and Tim Dunn are Harry Dunn’s parents. Harry Dunn was killed on August 27 by Anne Sacoolas, the wife of U.S. diplomat Jonathan Sacoolas, police said. He was 19 years old.
Dunn had been riding his Kawasaki motorcycle close to the town of Croughton, 70 miles west of London, when he was struck by Sacoolas’ Volvo XC90. Authorities have said that Sacoolas had been driving on the wrong side of the road when Dunn was killed. Following the crash, Harry Dunn was rushed to John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford, where he was pronounced dead.
Since the accident, Sacoolas, 42, has returned to the U.S. and according to the United States Embassy in London, she is claiming diplomatic immunity. Jonathan Sacoolas works at the Royal Air Force base at Croughton, where a U.S. Air Force communication station is based.
On October 15, family spokesman Radd Seiger announced that the family had been invited to the White House for a meeting that afternoon.
Here’s what you need to know:
1. Tim Dunn & His Son Shared a Love of Northampton Town Football Club
GettyNorthampton Town fans observe a minutes applause in the 19th minute to honor the memory of Northampton fan Harry Dunn.
At the time of writing, a GoFundMe page that has been set up to support Harry Dunn’s family has raised close to $40,000. The page is titled “Justice4Harry.” The page says that Harry Dunn is survived by his parents as well as twin brother, Niall, three other brothers and a sister as well as step-parents Bruce and Tracey. The family is described on the fundraising page as being a “large close-knit family.”
GoFundMe/Harry DunnDunn pictured on the GoFundMe page which has been start in an effort to draw more attention to his death.
On the GoFundMe page, it says that Tim Dunn and Harry Dunn shared a passion for Northampton Town Football Club, their local soccer team, nicknamed the Cobblers. During the Northampton Town v Plymouth Argyle, fans of both teams joined together in a joint round of applause for Harry Dunn and his family.
Facebook/Tim DunnTim Dunn pictured with his son.
Tim Dunn paid tribute to the fans, writing on Twitter, “Just wanted to thank #ntfc #pafc fans for the respect you guys showed my son with your applause on the 19th minute. It’s been a really tough few days since Tuesday night but the power of football gave me a smile today it was amazing.”
GoFundMe/Harry Dunn
The GoFundMe page also notes that there are Twitter, Facebook and Instagram pages that are dedicated to Harry Dunn’s family’s efforts to have Anne Sacoolas extradited. On his personal Twitter page, Tim Dunn writes, “Cobblers and Golf mad plus love a bit of ska.”
2. Charlotte Charles Has Called Trump’s Response to the Crash ‘Beyond Any Realm of Human Thinking’
#trumpnotes @realDonaldTrump (If Raised) Note, as @SecPompeo told Foreign Secretary @DominicRaab that the spouse of the U.S. Government employee will not return to the United Kingdom. @SkyNews
President Donald Trump has referred to Dunn’s death as a “terrible accident.” Trump said, “You know, those are the opposite roads, that happens. I won’t say it ever happened to me, but it did. So a young man was killed, the person that was driving the automobile has diplomatic immunity, we’re going to speak to her very shortly and see if we can do something where they meet.”
Charlotte Charles (2R) and Tim Dunn, (2L), parents of teenage motorcyclist Harry Dunn.
United Kingdom Prime Minister Boris Johnson has contacted President Trump regarding the possible extradition of Sacoolas. Those efforts have been unsuccessful. During a press conference on October 9, reporter Jabin Botsford posted a photo of a talking points note that the president had been using. One note said, “(If raised) Note, as Secretary Pompeo and Foreign Secretary Raab, that the spouse of the U.S. government employee will not return to the United Kingdom.”
Speaking to Sky News, Charlotte Charles referred to this as “beyond any realm of human thinking.” Charles went on to say, “I don’t see the point in Boris Johnson talking to President Trump, or President Trump even taking a call from Boris Johnson. If he’d already made his decision that if it were to be asked and if it were to be raised, the answer was already going to be no.” The official word from the English government is that officials are urging President Trump to reconsider his decision.
British opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn has called the use of diplomatic immunity in Dunn’s death as “completely unacceptable” and has raised the prospect of mounting legal action against the United States. While Corbyn said Trump’s comments around Harry Dunn’s death were “crass and insensitive.”
GettyFamily spokesman Radd Seiger speaks to the media on behalf of the parents of Harry Dunn, Tim Dunn and Charlotte Charles, after meeting with Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab on October 9, 2019 in London, England.
On October 9, Charles and Tim Dunn met with UK Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab. According to the BBC, Dunn said following the meeting, “I’m deeply, deeply disappointed that they think it’s OK to kill a young lad on his bike and they can just walk away.” Through a family spokesperson, Radd Seiger, Harry Dunn’s parents referred to the meeting as nothing more than a “publicity stunt.” While Charles said that she felt “let down” by both the UK and U.S. Governments. In addition to meeting with Raab, Charles and Dunn met the United Kingdom Ambassador Woody Johnson.
3. Charlotte Charles & Tim Dunn Arrived in the United States on October 11 in an Effort to Draw More Attention to Their Case
Tim Dunn told the BBC on October 11, “We have to go to America and speak to the American people. We can’t let this be swept under the carpet.” Dunn said that his family was considering a civil action against Anne Sacoolas. Dunn told the network that civil action was “an avenue we are looking at… We are out of our depth really, I feel like I’m on autopilot.” Dunn said that the family wants to speak with Sacoolas saying, “We want answers from her about what happened, there are things the police cannot answer.”
“The feeling we all got was that he didn’t know his arse from his elbow…it was a catastrophically bad meeting.”
Raad Seiger, the lawyer acting as an advisor to Harry Dunn’s family commenting on their meeting with @DominicRaab yesterday.
Family spokesman Radd Seiger told the Daily Mail that Dunn and Charles will land in Washington D.C. on October 11 and will travel to New York City on October 13. The parents are booked for interviews with NBC, CBS and ABC, according to the Mail report. Seiger added, “We will not rest until we have Sacoolas back in the UK. We don’t want a war, both families need to sit down and talk.” Seiger also said that the family felt the words coming from the White House regarding the case were “positive.”
4. Charlotte Charles Says Her Family Are Looking for Some Kind of Sign From Anne Sacoolas That Says She Is Remorseful
In an interview with CBS News, Charlotte Charles said of Sacoolas, “She killed our boy. If it wasn’t for her being under this supposed diplomatic immunity, it would have been a clear cut case… and it’s just all turned into an absolute nightmare for us. We’ve just been left to just accept that she’s got this diplomatic immunity, and (the case is) swept under the carpet.” Charles said that her family is looking for some kind of acknowledgment from Sacoolas that she is remorseful.
During an interview with ITV News in the UK, Tim Dunn said, “My son was taken from us at such a tender age doing what he loved doing most in life.” Charles said in the same interview, “We are utterly devastated by Harry’s loss. He was such a precious young man who was loved by all who knew him. Our lives have been shattered. We are totally deprived of the ability to grieve, and our lives are now painfully on hold.” Charlotte Charles touched upon that in an interview with CNN saying that if Sacoolas were to be extradited, it would “help [Harry Dunn’s family] start grieving.”
5. Charles & Dunn Are ‘Not Coping Well at All’ With the Death of Their Son
GettyA general view of flowers left in remembrance of Harry Dunn on the B4031 near RAF Croughton on October 7, 2019 near Brackley, England.
Family spokesperson Radd Seiger said in the ITV interview, “If that weren’t bad enough, they now have a situation not of their making where the American government has whisked this American citizen back to the U.S. before they could get some justice.” Seiger added that Dunn and Charles were “not coping well at all” with the death of their son. Charles had earlier told Sky News, “We’re all broken. We’re just utterly shocked and appalled that somebody is allowed to get on a plane and go home and avoid our justice system.” Charles added that she felt Sacoolas has “got to be suffering as well. She’s a mom. Without knowing who this person is properly, we can’t … start our grieving process.”
Chief Constable of Northamptonshire Police Nick Adderley has said that the investigation into Harry Dunn’s death is still ongoing. Adderly said, via the BBC, “We are expediting that file, so that file of evidence will be with the Crown Prosecution Service within the next few days.”
Northamptonshire Superintendent Sarah Johnson said that in the aftermath of the crash, all of the normal procedures were followed. Johnson said that Sacoolas engaged with the police and said that she had no plans to leave the country.
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