Kenneth Glad
An assault case in Cambridge has put renewed focus on foreign service personnel and local justice. The case shows how quickly civilian expectations can collide with military procedures.
British academic Sarah Steele has criticised the handling of her case after she was assaulted by Jacob Wulfson, a US air force captain based at RAF Lakenheath in Suffolk.
The assault happened in Cambridge, not on the base. RAF Lakenheath is a major US military site in Britain, which makes off-base allegations involving American personnel especially sensitive for local police, complainants and the public.
Case moved to US court martial
Wulfson was tried by US court martial at RAF Lakenheath rather than in a British criminal court. The Guardian reported that he was convicted of assault by strangulation, acquitted of sexual assault and sentenced to six months in confinement.
According to the newspaper, US air force police said jurisdiction was discussed with Cambridgeshire police. The local force confirmed that US military investigators were allowed to lead the case.
Steele said she was not asked before that decision was made.
“No member of the British constabulary ever asked me what I wanted,” she said.
According to The Guardian, Steele and Wulfson first connected through the dating app Tinder in September 2023, several months before meeting in person.
After exchanging messages over a period of time, they arranged to meet at Wulfson’s apartment in Cambridge in December 2023. The assault occurred during that first face-to-face meeting.
A civilian faced a military process
The court martial placed Steele in a system that, by her account, felt unfamiliar and difficult to navigate. She gave evidence at RAF Lakenheath, inside a military setting, before a panel of US air force officers rather than a civilian jury.
The Guardian writes that Wulfson did not testify, while his lawyers denied the sexual assault allegations. After the strangulation conviction, Wulfson told the court he had been drunk and “took things too far.”
A US air force spokesperson defended the process, saying: “The military justice process includes strict procedural safeguards by design to ensure proceedings are fair, transparent and thorough.”
Steele now wants clearer records, stronger oversight and consultation with complainants before British police allow cases involving US personnel to move into military hands.
For civilians near overseas bases, the question is not only where a trial happens. It is whether they are told who will investigate, why that choice was made and what protections they can expect once the case leaves the local system.
Sources: The Guardian.
