David Lammy to ask US about case of woman strangled by US fighter in UK

Jacob Wulfson was tried at a court martial on a US airbase despite his crime taking place while off duty. Photograph: Tech. Sgt. Joseph Pick/United States Air Forces Central View image in fullscreen Jacob Wulfson was tried at a court martial on a US airbase despite his crime taking place while off duty. Photograph: Tech. Sgt. Joseph Pick/United States Air Forces Central David Lammy to ask US about case of woman strangled by US fighter in UK Parliament comments follow investigation revealing how man was tried at court martial on US airbase David Lammy, the deputy prime minister, is raising with the US government the “extremely concerning” case of an American fighter pilot who avoided a trial under English law for strangling a woman at his home in Cambridge. Lammy, who is also the justice secretary, told parliament on Tuesday that he wanted the US government to give a full account of the case of Sarah Steele, an academic who was assaulted by the pilot. He added that officials across the British government were examining the issue as it concerned a number of government departments. His comments follow a pledge by Downing Street to look “really carefully” at what happened to her, with the prime minister’s spokesman calling it “deeply distressing”. Lammy was speaking following an investigation by the Guardian which revealed how the pilot, Captain Jacob Wulfson, was tried at a court martial on a US airbase, despite his crime taking place while he was off duty. Even though the crime had occurred within its territory, Cambridgeshire police had handed over responsibility for investigating Wulfson to the US military which then took control of the prosecution. Steele’s case has put the spotlight on an obscure agreement which gives UK police primary responsibility for investigating crimes that occur outside US bases while military personnel are off duty. However, it appears that the US seeks to maximise its jurisdiction, with British forces permitting the US military to investigate and prosecute such offences. Bizarre questions and an all-male ‘jury’: woman strangled by US pilot in Britain tells of airbase trial Read more On Tuesday, Jess Brown-Fuller, Liberal Democrat justice spokesperson, argued in parliament that “victims of crimes on English soil should see justice served in our justice system”. Lammy responded: “Halving violence against women and girls is a decade mission for this government. “This case is extremely concerning, and our thoughts, of course, are with the victim, Sarah, but given the cross-agency nature of this case, my officials are working across government and we’re raising this case with the US government to establish the full facts.” At his court martial in April, Wulfson was convicted of strangling an intimate partner but acquitted of sexual assault. An all-male panel of United States Air Force officers who served as the equivalent of a jury gave him a sentence of six months in a corrections facility at his base, RAF Lakenheath in Su