In August 2019, Anne Sacoolas was driving away from the US military base in RAF Croughton in Northamptonshire when she was involved in an accident in which 19-year-old Harry Dunn was riding his motorcycle, collided with her car and died.
The 43-year-old, who's married to an American intelligence officer, was charged with reckless driving while driving on the wrong side. Still, Mrs. Sacoolas pleaded diplomatic immunity and returned to the United States with her family.
Since then, Harry's family has struggled to get Mrs. Sacoolas back to the UK to stand trial.
Sacoolas and her husband Jonathan have now been informed that they will be "deposed" by July 23rd, which means they will testify under oath in front of Mr. Dunn's mother, Charlotte Charles, and his father, Tim Dunn.
The examination will be part of the "discovery" procedure in the Dunn family's civil lawsuit, in which lawyers will turn over appropriate correspondence and paperwork ahead of a trial scheduled for the end of the year.
"This will hopefully help them to process what happened to Harry Dunn as they continue to reconstruct their broken lives," family spokesman Radd Seiger said in response to the scheduling order.
In early March, Harry Dunn's family received permission from a Virginia judge to pursue a civil claim for damages against Mrs. Sacoolas and her husband.
Earlier this month, Charles also turned down Mrs. Sacoolas' offer to do community work claiming that it was not up to her or her legal counsel to decide what penalty she will face.
Amy Jeffress, Mrs. Sacoolas' lawyer, said her client had "never denied" responsibility for the road accident and would be able to do community service in the US, make a "contribution" in Mr. Dunn's memory, and meet with his family.
On the other hand, Charles said in an interview, "She must return to the United Kingdom and go through the legal system. It is not up to them to determine what punishment should be imposed, if any.
"She needs to find a solution, and the only way to do that is to go through the UK legal system.
"She needs to move on with her life, and we need to rebuild ours, but we can't do that until she goes through the UK justice system."
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The fatal crash
Anne Sacoolas rode on the "wrong side of the road for 20 seconds" before the fatal crash. Otherwise, she was traveling carefully and below the speed limit.
Ms. Sacoolas "instinctively" started driving on the right-hand side and could not see Harry Dunn due to "the crest of a small hill.
They said Anne did everything she could to help Harry Dunn in a public statement. She jumped out of her vehicle after the collision and attempted to assist him. When Anne saw another motorist approaching, she signaled her for assistance. The other driver immediately dialed 911, and Anne made phone calls to the nearby air force base to alert the police.
Harry Dunn was aided by the police officers, who arrived quickly. Unfortunately, the ambulance took about 40 minutes to arrive, and he was admitted to the hospital after almost two hours.
Anne did not leave the scene until the UK authorities informed her she had to. Her legal team has made an on-the-record announcement about her feelings about the possibility of a simulated trial.
They stated that they have been and continue to be willing to negotiate a settlement with UK authorities, including the prospect of virtual proceedings.
