But Sacoolas still refuses to return to the UK to be prosecuted and his lawyer Amy Jeffress now argues that his client would not be prosecuted in the US for a similar accident.
Sacoolas admits he was driving on the wrong side of the road when he touched Dunn in August 2019.
But Jeffress argued that this would not be enough for prosecution in the United States.
“This type of accident if it had occurred in the United States would not be prosecuted. Therefore, in the United States these cases are only prosecuted when there is evidence of recklessness that rises to the level of near intent, so driving drunk, distracted driving or a situation of attack or speeding. But there was nothing here, “Jeffress told BBC radio.
CNN legal analyst Paul Callan discussed the lawyer’s claim.
“I don’t think attorney Amy Jeffress’s statement accurately describes U.S. law. Driving on the wrong side of the road and killing someone in the process could be a felony in the United States,” said Callan, a former New York City homicide prosecutor told CNN Tuesday.
“In recent years, several U.S. states have enacted criminal statutes relating to ‘vehicular homicide.’ of the statutes, ”Callan said.
Sacoolas has been accused in the UK of causing the death of Dunn, 19, by dangerous driving, but the US State Department has rejected a request from the UK to extradite her.
“We have really been making efforts to resolve this case, in the absence of his return. We understand that community service is a typical sentence for crimes like this, and since then, more than a year ago, we offer that he would be willing to serve that kind of sentence and make a contribution to Harry’s memory, take other steps to try to bring some peace to the family, ”Jeffress added.
Dunn’s mother, Charlotte Charles, turned down the offer.
“I made a promise to Harry the night he died that he would get him justice. There is no circumstance in which I will break that promise. You don’t have to kill someone and leave. This campaign has been all responsibility and making sure no one is above the law, “he said in a statement on Tuesday.
Robert Buckland, UK Secretary of State for Justice, told BBC Radio’s Today program that the current situation had led to a denial of justice.
“The current situation is a denial of justice. Instead of talking about the sentence that would be appropriate, we first address the issue of liability,” he said Tuesday.
“It’s good to see Mrs Jeffress, whom I respect enormously, finally reach the British public,” Dunn family spokesman Radd Seiger said in a statement on Tuesday.
“However, I encourage you to enter into dialogue with the Crown Prosecutor’s Office to ensure that Mrs Sacoolas is confronted with the UK judicial system. It is not up to any of us to judge this case in public. We have one of the fairer the legal systems of the world and it is vitally important that justice is not only done for Harry, but that it is shown to be done. “
Seiger added: “Mrs Sacoolas must give a full account of what happened under oath in court and then the matter must be left in the hands of the judge and the jury.”