Questions are swirling and safety concerns are mounting as details continue to emerge about what Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan's team says was a harrowing "car chase" fueled by paparazzi Tuesday night.
The incident is reviving memories of the 1997 paparazzi chase and resulting car accident that killed Prince Harry's mother, Princess Diana.
In a statement to USA TODAY and other media outlets Wednesday, Harry and Meghan's office described a "near catastrophic" chase that ensued after the royal couple left a charity event in New York City. Here's everything to know about the incident involving Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan.
Prince Harry, Duchess Meghansay they were in 'near catastrophic' car chase with paparazzi
What happened during Prince Harry and Meghan's 'car chase'?
The couple was involved in a car chase fueled by paparazzi Tuesday, their spokespeople said. The pair and Meghan's mother, Doria Ragland, were followed for more than two hours by half a dozen vehicles after leaving a charity event in New York on Tuesday, according to their spokespeople.
The chase "at the hands of a ring of highly aggressive paparazzi" to capture photos of the couple "resulted in multiple near collisions involving other drivers on the road, pedestrians and two NYPD officers," their team said in a statement to USA TODAY Wednesday.
"While being a public figure comes with a level of interest from the public, it should never come at the cost of anyone's safety," their office said. "Dissemination of these images, given the ways in which they were obtained, encourages a highly intrusive practice that is dangerous to all in involved."
USA TODAY has reached out to the duke and duchess' press office for more information.
Before 'car chase,'Duchess Meghan spoke about fighting for equity at Women of Vision gala
What did police say happened to Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan?
The New York Police department said officers assisted with the royal duo's security Tuesday night, though they didn't describe what happened as a "car chase."
Julian Phillips, deputy commissioner of public information for the New York Police Department, told USA TODAY in an emailed statement Wednesday that the NYPD assisted in protecting the duke and duchess along with their private security team.
"There were numerous photographers that made their transport challenging," Phillips said.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams told reporters Wednesday afternoon he hadn't yet received a full briefing about the incident. However, he said it is "reckless and irresponsible" for vehicles to be chasing each other in New York City, especially with its dense population. Adams added that "two of our officers could have been injured."
Look back at their relationship:Prince Harry doesn't join Prince William on palace balcony
Why were Harry and Meghan in NYC?
The couple was in New York City for the Ms. Foundation for Women's annual gala, at which Meghan accepted the Ms. Foundation Women of Vision Award Tuesday night alongside Black Voters Matter co-founder LaTosha Brown. Meghan and Harry entered and exited the event venue through a public entrance. There, paparazzi snapped photos of the duo who were dressed up for the occasion, with Meghan clad in a golden Johanna Ortiz gown.
Just before the event, reports surfaced that a stalker had been found near the duke and duchess' Montecito, California, home in the wee hours of Monday morning.
The Santa Barbara Sheriff's Office told USA TODAY in an emailed statement Wednesday that deputies responded to a report of someone being detained at a service area under citizen's arrest for stalking. Police say the person was later released on bail for prowling, and the investigation is ongoing.
Prince Harry, Meghan's 'car chase' ended in a taxi
The couple and Ragland were eventually able to switch to a taxi cab and be whisked away, photos show.
The cab driver, Sukhcharn Singh, told The Associated Press that he instantly recognized his passengers when they scooted into his car. "They were following us the whole time," he said of the paparazzi, though he said he wouldn't call it a chase.
USA TODAY has reached out to the New York City Taxi & Limousine Commission.
While differing characterizations of the incident may emerge, it can be "problematic" to scrutinize the reality of someone’s lived experience, says Mariah Rooney, a clinical social worker and experienced trauma therapist.
Rooney adds that the questioning of people's truth can perpetuate a culture of victim-blaming that’s detrimental to survivors of trauma. “A big part of what can be protective in the face of trauma is how people respond to us: Are we believed? Are we attuned to? Are we supported?” Rooney says. “We exacerbate the impacts of harm when we start to question people, not believe them, minimize their stories (and) invalidate their stories and their experiences.”
Royal children's roles, unpacked:Did Harry, William attend King Charles' coronation?
Was Prince Harry in a car accident?
No, Prince Harry and Meghan were not in a car crash or accident. Neither was harmed, according to police.
"The Duke and Duchess of Sussex arrived at their destination and there were no reported collisions, summonses, injuries, or arrests in regard," Phillips said.
Princess Diana’s car accident death following a paparazzi chase and the impact of past trauma
Harry's mother, Princess Diana, died in a car accident in 1997 after being chased by paparazzi in France.
In the early hours of Aug. 31, 1997, Princess Diana and her beau Dodi Fayed attempted to evade relentless paparazzi by hopping in the backseat of a black Mercedes S280, driven by Ritz security employee Henri Paul. The speeding car, in a misguided attempt to outrun photogs, collided with a concrete pillar in the Pont de l'Alma tunnel. Fayed and Paul died on the scene. Diana was later pronounced dead at the hospital.
Harry has spoken at length about the trauma of losing his mother at a young age, both in his revealing memoir “Spare” and in TV interviews. Rooney says it can be “particularly difficult” for trauma survivors to “experience traumas or events that are very similar to things that we have experienced in the past.”
A timeline:What happened the day Princess Diana died
Prince Harry's legal battles with the media are ongoing
The couple's challenges and frustrations with media are not new. The incident comes as Prince Harry is embroiled in court battles with British tabloids, which he alleges have invaded his family's privacy and wrought havoc for decades. He is currently suing three British tabloid publishers over alleged phone hacking and other unlawful snooping. Meghan won an invasion of privacy case in 2021 against the publisher of the Daily Mail.
The prince's legal fights have resulted in at least one publisher admitting to gathering information on the prince unlawfully earlier this month. Harry is expected to appear in court in June against the publisher of The Mirror.
Prince Harry previously denounced the British media's "malicious" and "relentless" coverage of his wife, sharing an emotional open letter in 2019. "Unfortunately, my wife has become one of the latest victims of a British tabloid press that wages campaigns against individuals with no thought to the consequences – a ruthless campaign that has escalated over the past year, throughout her pregnancy and while raising our newborn son," he wrote in the statement.
"My deepest fear is history repeating itself," he wrote. "I've seen what happens when someone I love is commoditised to the point that they are no longer treated or seen as a real person. I lost my mother and now I watch my wife falling victim to the same powerful forces."
About Prince Harry:British tabloid publisher admits to unlawfully gathering information
What are Harry and Meghan's legal rights surrounding paparazzi?
Legal protections against paparazzi for public figures who are out in public are limited, New York City-based media and entertainment lawyer Craig Delsack told USA TODAY Wednesday.
"In the United States, (it's) much different than the U.K.," Delsack said. "They're public (figures), and they were out in the public. People can take pictures of people out in the public. There's no right of privacy expected when you're out in the public."
Being followed by a car, he said, is not a violation to rights of privacy. And generally speaking, damages have to occur before legal action can be taken.
"The mere photographing of a person out in public does not amount to a damage unless there was some sort of expectation of privacy," Delsack said.
What does this incident say about society?
Vanessa Díaz, a professor and author of the book “Manufacturing Celebrity: Latino Paparazzi and Women Reporters in Hollywood,” encourages people to use this incident as a way to examine celebrity culture at large, rather than demonize paparazzi, many of whom, she says, come from disenfranchised backgrounds and do this work out of necessity.
“It's a really easy scapegoat to kick the people who are already at the bottom of the entertainment system, who are already disparaged instead of actually dealing with the power structures that demand the labor,” she says. “We have to think a lot more critically about how these situations are framed and what bigger kind of power dynamics are really at play here.”
Instead of placing the blame entirely on paparazzi, Díaz says broader issues like our culture’s obsession with celebrities and the financial incentives in society for glimpses at their personal lives also contributed.
Incident prompts mixed reactions on social media
Social media became a breeding ground for commentary as news spread.
Some, like former Fox host Megyn Kelly, expressed skepticism about the gravity of the event.
"I lived in Manhattan for 17 yrs & it is not possible to have a 2hr 'car chase' there," Kelly wrote on Twitter. "Too many street lights/stop signs, too much foot/car traffic & hundreds of places you could safely pull over to protect yourself."
User @paulamatanovich posted a video clip of a yellow cab on Twitter and wrote that there was "no car chase, one can clearly see the paps were waiting for them and how #princeharry #meghanmarkle slowed and stopped for the pictures to be taken."
Others were more sympathetic, pointing to the trauma Harry has likely faced and sharing frustrations about the paparazzi. BBC presenter Richie Brave expressed disdain at the action of the photographers involved.
"Someone's mum dies tragically in a car crash after being chased by paparazzi, so what do you do as paparazzi? Chase them like you did their mum. It's quite sick tbh," Brave wrote.
User @TheLakesDuchess tweeted: "This is horrifying and is exactly why Prince Harry is fighting so hard to protect his family. Do you understand why the 'we want privacy' jokes aren’t funny now?! Their lives are at stake. Everyone deserves to be free from this level of intrusion."
Contributing: Charles Trepany, Edward Segarra, Joy Ashford, USA TODAY; The Associated Press
