The jury returned joint verdicts of “unlawful killing through grossly negligent driving” – or gross negligence manslaughter.
They say that Princess Diana was killed when Henri Paul crashed the hired Mercedes into a pillar in the Alma underpass in 1997.
Here is the Talking Point transcript from the BBC regarding the Burrell trial.
It is interesting that media lawyer Mark Stephens is so pro-monarchy, he’s actually anti-monarchy. Confused? Don’t be. Look at what he said, then tell me if you agree with me:
I’ve represented a number of Royal servants and ex-Royal servants and all of them have had this great, great discretion – they’re the sort of servants that you really would want in your own home because they are so discreet – they just don’t tell you anything about what goes on in the Royal household and rightly so.
This will probably not go over too well with the general public. Taxpayer money has been spent, it has been regarded as ‘wasted’, and many people have accused the Queen of interfering. In light of this atmosphere, it is not a smart idea to talk as if we could even have servants or know about the world of courtiers. Stephens needs a more even-handed approach, and by not doing that he is making the Queen and the family look bad or as if they have something to hide. Comments?
I do. I need to get clean after reading about Paul Burrell. The Sun newspaper in London has uncovered a video in which Burrell speaks about misleading the coroner, British High Court judge Lord Justice Scott Baker.
Burrell freely admits he knew that he broke the law by lying to the inquest, adding: “I was very naughty.”
I was very naughty!? Now is not the time to be playing the coquette in a matter this serious, Paul. I know it is your deep desire to actually be a blonde, beloved Princess, but right now your life and credibility are on the line.
To read further, take a look at The Times. I wish this inquest would end, but how can it with people like Burrell?!
Those poor Princes.
Things must be so difficult right now as photos of their mother’s final moments have been released to the public. William and Harry won’t be able to make a move without seeing them on the front of newspapers everywhere, having to be constantly reminded of such a sad event.
The photo shot from the front of the car is very chilling. Trevor Rees-Jones looks hunted, Henri Paul looks shocked, and Diana is turned away, looking out of the back window and wondering when the pursuit will end.
You know that five minutes later they, along with Dodi Fayed, will be no more. Rees-Jones will be the only one to survive but with a face smashed beyond recognition; the sleek car in which they comfortably travel will soon become a twisted mangle of metal; families shattered, and a country plunged into turmoil.
Even Mohammed Fayed has to know in his heart that the Royal Family could not have orchestrated such a catastrophe. I do not believe his accusations for one moment, but I do feel sorry for him in the loss of his son. I sympathize with his grief.
The Queen and Prince Philip, who did not understand Diana, still tried to help her and love their grandsons without question. Why would they want such harm to befall her that would undoubtably affect their grandchildren’s lives?
As I have said before, Fayed is just angry that he was caught bribing MPs and is not allowed British citizenship. He is taking it out on an easy target, simply because the Duke is well-known for his comical colonial remarks. Fayed’s unfounded accusations are also dangerous for Arab-Western relations and completely unfair. If it did turn out that future King William had an Egyptian half-sibling through his mother’s relationship with Dodi Fayed, what’s the problem? That child would not be sovereign, William would. May I note, also, that King Abdullah II of Jordan, who is a monarch, is half Jordanian and half English, and he is a remarkable man who has helped bridge a lot of differences.
People need to look at the whole picture. I hope that this inquest will end things sooner rather than later.
LONDON (AFP) – Queen Elizabeth II and her husband Prince Philip will not be approached by officials investigating princess Diana’s 1997 death in a Paris car crash, a coroner said Monday.
Michael Mansfield, lawyer for Mohammed Al-Fayed, father of Diana’s boyfriend Dodi who also died in the smash, wanted the monarch to agree to be “a potential witness” and her husband to “answer inquiries.”
But the senior judge leading the inquest, Lord Justice Scott Baker, said this would not be “appropriate or necessary” at the moment, while pledging to keep the position “under review.”
