On Tuesday night, Prince Harry, Meghan Markle, and Markle’s mother Doria Ragland were involved in a car chase with paparazzi that a spokesperson for the Prince described as “near catastrophic.” The incident reportedly occurred in New York City after the couple attended the Ms Foundation for Women’s 50th anniversary event, where Markle was honored with a Woman of Vision Award. Deadline reports that the Duke, Duchess, and Ragland were not hospitalized, and are all now “doing OK.”
“Last night, The Duke and Duchess of Sussex and Ms. Ragland were involved in a near catastrophic car chase at the hands of a ring of highly aggressive paparazzi. This relentless pursuit, lasting over two hours, resulted in multiple near collisions involving other drivers on the road, pedestrians and two NYPD officers,” a spokesperson for the couple shared in a statement with The A.V. Club. “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.”
The situation carries haunting similarities to the tragic crash that caused Prince Harry’s mother Princess Diana’s death in Paris in 1997, which occurred while paparazzi were following her vehicle. A source close to the situation tells The A.V. Club that last night’s pursuit found paparazzi vehicles running red lights, driving on the sidewalk, and reversing down a one way street, among other traffic violations.
In the past, the Duke of Sussex—who is no stranger to intense media attention—has expressed concerns of “history repeating itself,” noting that Diana’s fatal crash—and the chase that precipitated it—occurred while she was in a budding relationship with a person of color, Dodi Fayed.
“My mother was chased to her death while she was in a relationship with someone that wasn’t white and now look what’s happened,” Prince Harry said of the vicious paparazzi attention Markle has faced in his 2021 Apple TV+ docuseries The Me You Can’t See. “You want to talk about history repeating itself, they’re not going to stop until [Meghan] dies.”