Diana crash photographers in court
Three photographers are due to appear in court in Paris today charged with taking photographs at the scene of the crash that killed Diana, Princess of Wales, Dodi Fayed and their driver.
Jacques Langevin of the Sygma/Corbis agency, Christian Martinez of the Angelis agency and freelancer Eric Chassery could receive sentences of up to one year in prison and a 45,000 euro (£30,000) fine if convicted.
Last year, France’s highest court found the photographers not guilty of manslaughter after they were charged with having contributed to the crash by pursuing Diana’s vehicle at high-speed. Charges of failing to assist at the scene of an accident were also dropped.
Friday’s one-day hearing stems from a complaint filed by Mohammed Al Fayed, whose son Dodi died in the crash alongside Princess Diana and the couple’s driver Henri Paul.
A French investigation into the crash ruled that Mr Paul was to blame, having driven too fast under the influence of alcohol.
The paparazzi took photographs of Diana and Dodi in the car both before and after the accident, though none of those taken at the crash site were ever published.
The privacy cases centres on whether the inside of the car can be regarded as the couple’s private space or not. The charges relate only to Dodi Fayed, as Diana’s family have not lodged a complaint.
The crash occurred on August 31st 1997 in a Paris underpass.
Meanwhile, Diana’s former butler Paul Burrell has claimed in today’s Daily Mirror that Diana had nine secret “gentleman friends” including a Hollywood star, a sports legend, a leading musician and a famous politician.
Burrell states that the Princess referred to, and graded, her suitors by using a racing “trap” system and insists that Diana had no intention of marrying Dodi Fayed and worried about his problems with drink, drugs and prostitutes.
