Indeed this rings only too true this side of the pond, where an American diplomat’s wife, apparently driving on the wrong side of the road, was involved in a fatal crash that took the life of a teenage British motorcyclist. She was able to claim diplomatic immunity and fled the UK to avoid a charge of causing death by dangerous driving.
It means that under Articles 29 and 31 of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, the person of a diplomatic agent is inviolable, and that the receiving State (in this case the UK) may not exercise its criminal jurisdiction on diplomatic agents. Under Article 37, that protection extends to family members as well.
Diplomatic Immunity (in this case ratione personae) exists to prevent the receiving State from arresting or intimidating diplomats in order to coerce them into an unfavorable deal. It just has the side-effect of this kind of thing
You can’t say this site isn’t educational…
Indeed this rings only too true this side of the pond, where an American diplomat’s wife, apparently driving on the wrong side of the road, was involved in a fatal crash that took the life of a teenage British motorcyclist. She was able to claim diplomatic immunity and fled the UK to avoid a charge of causing death by dangerous driving.
Does this mean it’s legal to drive on the wrong side in her home country?
No, but it’s legal to drive on the right side.
rimshot (^_^)
It means that under Articles 29 and 31 of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, the person of a diplomatic agent is inviolable, and that the receiving State (in this case the UK) may not exercise its criminal jurisdiction on diplomatic agents. Under Article 37, that protection extends to family members as well.
Diplomatic Immunity (in this case ratione personae) exists to prevent the receiving State from arresting or intimidating diplomats in order to coerce them into an unfavorable deal. It just has the side-effect of this kind of thing