Queen Elizabeth’s 97-year-old husband Prince Philip will not have to face prosecution over a car crash that injured two women last month.
The Duke of Edinburgh was unhurt following the collision on Jan. 17 when he pulled out onto a main road and collided with an oncoming car near the royals’ Sandringham residence in eastern England.
Just two days after the crash the Duke received a warning from police for driving without a seat belt. Earlier this month he voluntarily gave up his driving license.
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Press TV reports: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said in a Thursday statement that Philip, the 97-year-old husband of Queen Elizabeth II, will not be tried in a court over the car crash last month that led to injuries for a 28-year-old woman driver and a 45-year-old woman passenger.
The crash, which took place near the royals’ Sandringham residence in eastern England on January 17, caused widespread controversy in Britain, especially after Philip defied public calls for giving up driving and appeared behind the wheel of a new car two days after the crash.
He even received a warning from the police for not fastening his seat belt during the new driving session.
Reports after the crash had suggested that Philip had no intention of giving up driving at 97 despite huge public outrage that the reckless act could cause other accidents. Those reports also indicated that the Queen was unhappy about the media attention to the case and was urging Philip to stop driving.
The UK judiciary, however, said that prosecution of Philip, who finally gave up his driving license earlier this month, would not be in the public interest, without elaborating why the member of the royal family should be exempt from legal proceedings.
“We have decided that it would not be in the public interest to prosecute,” said the CPS, adding, “We took into account all the circumstances in this case, including the level of culpability, the age of the driver and the surrender of the driving license.”
