The Guardian view on US military justice in Britain: a disturbing assault case should raise the alarm | Editorial
The court martial system for personnel on overseas airbases serves US interests – but what about those of their host nations? A British victim of
The court martial system for personnel on overseas airbases serves US interests – but what about those of their host nations? A British victim of crime, on British soil, might reasonably expect their assailant to be tried in the British justice system. That was not Sarah Steele’s experience. US military police quickly took charge of investigating her assault by Jacob Wulfson in late 2023, and the airman was prosecuted in a US court martial for a crime that took place off duty and off base, in an English city.
Downing Street said on Friday that it was “very concerning” that the case never reached the Crown Prosecution Service, and the Ministry of Justice has said it will look into it. Dr Steele waived her anonymity to speak to the Guardian about the “distressing and degrading” experience, casting light upon the little-known US military justice system and its use within the UK.
Wulfson was convicted of strangling an intimate partner but acquitted of sexual assault and “aggravated sexual contact” by an all-male panel of air force officers stationed at the same base, RAF Lakenheath. Legal experts said the latter offence would probably have been categorised as rape in a British court. Dr Steele faced invasive, aggressive and lengthy questioning; her attacker chose not to testify.
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