Sarah Steele, a British academic, has come forward to criticise the handling of her assault case by the US military justice system after she was strangled by an American fighter pilot at his home in Cambridge. The 42-year-old described the court martial process as 'military first, justice second' and 'distressing and degrading'.
Assault and US Military Takeover
Jacob Wulfson, a 32-year-old US Air Force captain, assaulted Steele in late 2023 after they met on a dating app. Despite the crime occurring on UK soil, American military police quickly took over the case. UK law enforcement typically has primary jurisdiction over crimes committed off-base by off-duty personnel, but in this instance, Cambridgeshire Police agreed to let the US Air Force take the lead.
Steele said she was never consulted about the handover. 'No member of the British constabulary ever asked me what I wanted,' she told the Guardian. She felt the process was like a 'train left the station' once the US military police took over.
Court Martial Proceedings
Wulfson's court martial was held in April at RAF Lakenheath in Suffolk, the largest US military base in the UK. He was convicted of strangling an intimate partner but acquitted of sexual assault. The all-male panel of air force officers sentenced him to six months in a corrections facility. Legal experts say if tried in British courts, he would likely have faced rape charges and a judge-determined sentence.
Steele described the court martial as 'archaic and bizarre', feeling like she was in an 'absurd Netflix series'. She endured invasive questioning over several days, with fighter jets roaring nearby. 'I do not think that the contemporary British judiciary would have allowed some of the conduct that was experienced in that courtroom,' she said.
Lack of Protections
Unlike UK courts, no screens protected Steele from Wulfson during her testimony; she sat just metres away. The all-male panel, she said, 'weren't representative of society at large'. She also had to personally request a no-contact order from Wulfson's commander after he violated a military order.
Appeal and Sentence
Wulfson's conviction is subject to automatic appeal, a process that could take years. He is serving his six-month confinement at RAF Lakenheath and can return to the US after release, with no restrictions on contacting Steele. Legal experts consider the sentence lenient compared to UK standards.
Call for Reform
Steele, who holds a doctorate in law and researches violence against women, hopes her case highlights the need for scrutiny of how UK police hand over cases to US military authorities. She wants formal recording of such decisions and survivor input. 'If we're going to host these foreign forces here... there's a necessity that we have a really clear, transparent, focused process,' she said.
A US Air Force spokesperson said the military justice process includes 'strict procedural safeguards' to ensure 'fair, transparent and thorough' proceedings. Cambridgeshire Police confirmed the agreement for US investigative primacy.
