Sarah Steele, a British academic, has come forward to criticize the handling of her case after she was strangled by a US fighter pilot at his home in Cambridge, England. The pilot, Captain Jacob Wulfson, was tried via a US court martial at RAF Lakenheath, a process Steele described as “military first, justice second.”
Assault and Jurisdiction
Steele met Wulfson on a dating app in late 2023. During their first face-to-face encounter at Wulfson’s apartment, he strangled her despite her having set “ground rules” not to touch her neck. Prosecutors also alleged he drugged and sexually assaulted her, though he was acquitted of sexual assault. Despite the assault occurring on UK soil, American military police quickly took over the case, and Wulfson was tried by US air force prosecutors.
UK law enforcement has primary jurisdiction over crimes off-base and off-duty, but Steele’s case highlights how authorities cede authority to the US military. Steele said Cambridgeshire police did not contact her to discuss the handover or explain what it would entail. “No member of the British constabulary ever asked me what I wanted,” she said.
Court Martial Experience
Wulfson’s court martial was held in April 2024 at RAF Lakenheath, the largest US military base in the UK. He was convicted of strangling an intimate partner and sentenced to six months in a corrections facility by an all-male panel of air force officers acting as a jury. Legal experts say a UK trial would likely have resulted in a rape charge and a judge-determined sentence.
Steele endured invasive questioning over several days, with no protection equivalent to a screen used in English courts. She sat just metres from Wulfson, while fighter jets roared nearby. “It felt like the shadowlands,” she said. “It felt like this alternative, weird world.”
Lack of Victim Support
Steele, who holds a doctorate in law and researches violence against women, said the process was “confronting, and at times frustrating and distressing.” She noted that the court martial felt “archaic and bizarre,” like an absurd Netflix series. The defence lawyers attacked her credibility aggressively, which she said would not have been allowed in a British court.
Steele also had to personally request a protective order from Wulfson’s commander after learning he had violated a no-contact order. She fears that without transparency, future victims may face similar ordeals.
Call for Reform
Steele is calling for greater scrutiny of how UK police cede cases to the US military, especially when victims are British citizens. She believes decisions should be formally recorded and survivors consulted. “It’s in the US military’s interest to have their cases heard in their own settings… because then they can control everything,” she said.
A spokesperson for the US air force said the military justice process includes “strict procedural safeguards by design to ensure proceedings are fair, transparent and thorough.” Wulfson’s conviction is subject to automatic appeal, a process that could take years.
