robin1234

Yankashire

I have to say, I don't agree... yes, many Americans pride themselves on self-reliance, but the entire history of the American economy is underpinned by the rule of law... for example, secure property rights and rights of contract, including for foreigners and (lately) members of historically disfavored minority groups, which sense of security encourages a sense of safety in one's investments. The Americans could not have been as successful as they were without the rule of law. The bottom line is, you ought to get a fair shake in an American court regardless of who you are, and if you don't, I and a lot of other Americans would have a big problem with that.

Now, when law bleeds into international relations and the accompanying politics, we are into a whole other can of worms. But I would say that a sense of procedural (as opposed to substantive) fairness is inculcated in most of us as young children, and it sticks with us through life...

robin1234

Hiro11

Shock of all shocks, I actually agree with you on something. I believe what you're talking about is a fundamental underpinning of what it means to be American: what Thoreau called "civil disobedience". Everything from Ben Franklin to MLK to more questionable things like the NRA and the Black Power movement comes from a similar place and a similar mentality. Even frivolous things like Twisted Sister singing "We're Not Gonna Take It", Burning Man and the Barkley Marathons (look that one up) capture a bit of the spirit.

Yankashire

This seems to me a bit like trying to understand modern Russia by reading Pushkin... it provides a bit of cultural insight, but ultimately, the US is, like the UK, a modern, mostly functional republic with a well-developed rule-of-law culture... "Sovereign citizens", assorted militant and mainstream civil society groups, and pop culture references notwithstanding...

Edit: I guess the UK is not technically a republic, of course, but functions mostly as if...

spouse of scouse

The US has refused a Home Office request to extradite Sacoolas to the UK, saying the request is highly inappropriate.
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-...shire-51075235

DaveLovesDee

Next step should be to issue an Interpol arrest warrant, whereby she can be arrested if she lands in any of the Interpol signatory countries.

spouse of scouse

Do you think the UK government will do that Dave? And do you know if she can be tried 'in absentia' in the UK? I seem to recall that the EU wasn't keen on in absentia trials, but some EU countries do have these. (I know that the EU may not have a say shortly)

scrubbedexpat142

We all know the rule enforced by the U.S. - We do as we like and you do as we like.

Rete

As a Yank, I do firmly believe that this woman should return to the UK and turn herself in. She drove a vehicle negligently (wrong side of the street), hit a bike rider, killed him and fled the country. As a person of integrity and conscious, she should stand tall and accept her punishment.

Expatrick -- don't know where in hell you got that rule "We do as we like and you do as we like" sounds like someone with a deep hatred on their shoulder.

spouse of scouse

Yes. It's the only way the family of the lad who was killed will be able to begin to heal. I also think it's the only way that Sacoolas will be able to live with herself, even the young man's mother has said she feels sorry for her and that the family (through their solicitor) would ask for a suspended sentence instead of a custodial one.

caretaker

If they don't want her extradited, then they should get her to surrender on her own. Intelligence Officer sounds more like Spook than Diplomat, so it doesn't make sense for them to prolong the news interest. They should just get it done and get it off the BBC and show some respect for the host country. The most powerful nation in the world should be able to get a lady to go to court for causing a traffic fatality.

scrubbedexpat142

Probably an appreciation of history - ignorance of which you have just admitted to (IR 655 for example)!!

andyrebell

Would you return and serve your time in Larkhall and have Jim Fenner as you prison officer? She probably watches bad girls and thinks that is what english jails are like. She wouldn't last a week in an english jail and she knows it.

Nutmegger

One would like to think that, if she doesn’t surrender, this woman will never again set foot outside the US. A kind of house arrest.