Unsurprisingly, a cottage industry of “Sussex doubters” cropped up within minutes of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s statement about the New York paparazzi chase on Tuesday night. The doubters screamed that it was all a set-up, that Harry and Meghan are desperate for attention, that they were lying about everything from the two-hour ordeal to the number of paparazzi involved. The fact that these internet-doubters are rabid royalists is not surprising. What is surprising is that even the American tabloid media (including the New York Post) is backing up the Sussexes’ story completely. From TMZ:
A source tells TMZ the chase started around 10 PM, after the award ceremony, and the pursuit was at its most intense on the FDR Drive … a highway on the east side of Manhattan. We’re told Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s SUV got up to about 80 mph as they tried to shake the paparazzi.
We’re also told it ended around midnight … so, that 2-hour time span Harry and Meghan’s spokesperson mentioned is accurate.
At some point during the chase, the SUV pulled over and the trio jumped in a New York taxi and beat a hasty retreat. It looks like the cops tried to outwit the paps by driving in a different direction than the cab. Sources say the paparazzi were in a half-dozen blacked-out vehicles, claiming the traffic violations included driving on the sidewalk, running red lights and driving the wrong way on a one-way street.
For some reason, the “switched cars and took a taxi” part has broken people’s brains. I mean, we weren’t there, we don’t know why the police and their security people made that decision. I would think that leaving their SUV and taking a chance with a cab would add to their problems, but again, we don’t know the specifics of the situation and it’s more than possible the switch was meant to cause confusion among the paps. It certainly caused a lot of confusion among the rabid haters and delusional royalists. Meanwhile, Page Six mustered up a surprising amount of sympathetic coverage:
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are “extremely upset and shaken” after being involved in a “near-catastrophic” two-hour paparazzi chase in New York City on Tuesday night. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, who were traveling with Markle’s mom, Doria Ragland, were pursued by photographers after leaving the Ziegfeld Theater — where the former actress was honored by Gloria Steinem at the Women of Vision Awards — in Manhattan.
The trio left the event in an SUV around 10 p.m., and were immediately followed by around 12 paparazzi, we’re told. They eventually decided to ditch their original vehicle and jump into a yellow cab in hopes of evading photogs, a source claims. The insider alleges that one cameraman hit a car while another almost ran over an NYPD officer during the “near-fatal” chase.
“It started off with 12 paparazzi, then ended up with four chasing [Meghan, Harry and Doria],” the insider tells us. “Their security tried their best to lose [photographers].” Once in the taxi, Harry used his cellphone to record the ensuing melee. We’re told security was also recording to gather evidence.
Paparazzi were confronted by uniformed police officers, but ignored warnings and continued chasing the trio, we hear. Our source calls the incident “absolutely shocking” and says Ragland, who is 66 years old, was particularly “terrified” by the ordeal.
“Everyone is still upset, to say the least. It was horrific,” the source tells us.
It sounds horrific and terrifying. Going back to TMZ’s story, “Sources say the paparazzi were in a half-dozen blacked-out vehicles.” I’ve also heard (but it has not been verified in any reporting) that the paparazzi had covered up their license plates. Even if you believe that everyone involved in this pursuit was an unarmed paparazzo, how would the Sussexes even know that? All they knew, in real time, was that there were multiple vehicles driving recklessly and the vehicles appeared to be part of an organized operation. While I would guess that Harry was triggered by memories of what happened to his mother, I would also think that his military training jumped out and he understood that there was something really “off” about the situation.
A member of the Sussexes’ security – a former Secret Service agent – named Chris Sanchez also spoke to CNN:
Exclusive: Member of Prince Harry and Meghan's security detail tells @MaxFosterCNN there were about a dozen vehicles pursuing the couple after last night's event in NYC.
"The public were in jeopardy at several points. It could have been fatal." pic.twitter.com/BqF3V0ZvWC
— CNN International PR (@cnnipr) May 17, 2023
Photos courtesy of Backgrid.
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- New York, NY – Prince Harry, Meghan Markle, and her mother Doria Ragland depart The Ms. Foundation Women of Vision Awards at Ziegfeld Theatre in New York City. Pictured: Meghan Markle, Prince Harry BACKGRID USA 16 MAY 2023 USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
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- New York, NY – Prince Harry, Meghan Markle, and her mother Doria Ragland depart The Ms. Foundation Women of Vision Awards at Ziegfeld Theatre in New York City. Pictured: Meghan Markle, Prince Harry BACKGRID USA 16 MAY 2023 USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
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- New York, NY – Prince Harry and Meghan Markle depart The Ms. Foundation Women of Vision Awards at Ziegfeld Theatre in New York City. Pictured: Prince Harry, Meghan Markle BACKGRID USA 16 MAY 2023 BYLINE MUST READ: BeautifulSignatureIG / BACKGRID USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
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- New York, NY – Prince Harry, Meghan Markle, and her mother Doria Ragland depart The Ms. Foundation Women of Vision Awards at Ziegfeld Theatre in New York City. Pictured: Prince Harry, Meghan Markle BACKGRID USA 16 MAY 2023 BYLINE MUST READ: Fernando Ramales / BACKGRID USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
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- New York, NY – Prince Harry, Meghan Markle, and her mother Doria Ragland depart The Ms. Foundation Women of Vision Awards at Ziegfeld Theatre in New York City. Pictured: Prince Harry, Meghan Markle BACKGRID USA 16 MAY 2023 BYLINE MUST READ: Fernando Ramales / BACKGRID USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
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- New York, NY – Prince Harry, Meghan Markle, and her mother Doria Ragland depart The Ms. Foundation Women of Vision Awards at Ziegfeld Theatre in New York City. Pictured: Prince Harry, Meghan Markle BACKGRID USA 16 MAY 2023 BYLINE MUST READ: Fernando Ramales / BACKGRID USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
How were there no arrests?! Driving on the sidewalk? Almost hitting a cop?! NYPD doesn’t stand for endangering one of their own.
The paparazzi must be prosecuted! And I feel so bad especially for Doria. I imagine this was the intent, though. To frighten them while finding out with whom they were staying so they could stalk that person in the future and leave the Sussexes with one less safe space.
How are they going to arrest them DURING the chase?
The best hope is to identify the vehicles and track them down after the fact and arrest them. It looks like some of the paps are talking and the pap agency backgrid who posted the pictures put out a statement.
If I was Harry’s lawyers, I would file a lawsuit against backgrid and get the names of the paps that submitted pictures from them. Bring them in and interrogate them. Prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law.
Another action that should be taken is denying visas to any British citizens who can be identified as taking part in this terrorism. The threat to the Sussexes and Doria along with the threat to the public and law enforcement was very real. It sounds like the mayor was briefed on this incident yesterday before he answered questions.
@Snuffles You arrest them on the scene. That’s usually how it goes. You don’t give them a warning then let them go off to continue their crimes. You detain them. You could also halt them long enough so their targets have time to get away. Tell me this would happen with, say, a world leader. It wouldn’t. The NYPD didn’t do its job yesterday.
@thatsnotok
A DOZEN vehicles. Many of which were motorcycles, scooters and bikes zipping in and out of traffic. Do you think there were a dozen police officers on the scene in their own vehicles? And if there were, would they start their own chase on top of the chase already going on? I don’t think so.
I genuinely believe the only thing they can do is get them after the fact by reviewing videos and CCTV footage.
The same way cops pull over and arrest other speeding/reckless drivers.
In addition to questioning Backgrid (who received photos of the Sussexes taken during the chase), can’t the police also question the Daily Mail, which I understand received similar photos, and did in fact publish the photos, then promptly delete them? The DM knew they were wrongly obtained and was trying to distance itself from this. So, if they want to show they’re not involved, they should disclose the names of the people who provided the pictures to them. There are many ways to track down these people, if the authorities have the will.
They arrest them by turning on their sirens and pulling them over.
@bisynaptic That presumes the cars are willing to pull over to begin with and stop! One police vehicle alone cannot force another car to pull over. One alone can’t even prevent them from taking off again after the car has pulled over to start. For a dozen cars, there would need to be at least 3 dozen police vehicles to prevent them all from just taking off and to force them to pull over and stop to begin with.
@snuffles They were with a police motorcade for this very specific reason. To arrest and detain people behaving unlawfully while engaging or following them.
I think that perhaps the NYPD did their best but it wasn’t nearly good enough.
I keep saying it but on the world stage – for future visiting world leaders and diplomats – this would be very concerning.
This! I doubt these maniacs pull over after being asked nicely lmao.
The police were unprepared and outnumbered with the amount of vehicles chasing them. I’m sure they never expected a phalanx of huge chase SUVs behaving so aggressively with what they thought was the average celebrity couple and probably never considered this would happen. And given the amount of visitors to New York, both world leaders and celebrities, this has got to be resolved. The only thing they possibly could have done in this scenario was to call other squad cars to the scene, if back up was even available, but that may have really escalated the situation.
I lived in NYC for a decade and the NYPD really doesn’t do much traffic enforcement. Too busy harassing Black teenagers. I’ve been legally on my bike and run off the road by an NYPD officer in his car twice.
I lived in NYC in the 1990s—2000s. Agree with the assessment of NYPD’s priorities.
The last time I went anywhere without a security escort or a dog was for an event in NYC. I got followed from my hotel and when the car I was in took me into Brooklyn instead of my event in the other direction, I was frantic. I called 911 from my mobile. The police had me out of the car in under ten minutes. They didn’t know anything about me. They didn’t know what ethnicity I was. They took no shit and I remain grateful
Carrot, how terrifying. I’m glad they got you out of there quickly.
Meghan has the Gracie Award before the end of the month. Let’s see what the New York Police do to prevent this from happening a second time.
The ONLY positive thing I can say about this (after saying I’m grateful everyone is alright) is that their security team and NYPD will be doing things differently in future. I truly believe that their private security organization will be doing some investigating on their own. They protect people. Last night showed that they need to change it up. Last night showed that there was a very organized operation, and I suspect their security is going to be beating the bushes to get info. We haven’t learned the last of this.
That the paparazzi were able to get around security by using other, smaller vehicles should be raising a red flag for security operations/organizations in general, from the CIA, FBI and Secret Service on down.
^^ @Saucy&Sassy, the Gracie Awards is not taking place in NYC. It’s to take place in L.A. It’s also an event that will be honoring a number of famous women in broadcast and film media/ entertainment. Thus, Meg would not be the main famous celebrity attending. I do wonder now about how the Sussexes’ security detail will manage this public appearance. The optics, logistics, venue, and city are quite different, as will be the attendees and the crowd, who in L.A., are more accustomed to living near and seeing in public, big-time celebrities.
Security will surely be extra tight, if Meg still attends. For this event, she could decide to accept her award via live video instead of attending. But I hate that they would feel the necessity to change their plans due to this premeditated harassment. I’m sure their security will confer with them regarding threat assessment and the best way to proceed. In future, as a precaution, there may be no lengthy advance information released about public appearances by the Sussexes.
I can’t prove this, however I believe this was intentionally orchestrated and carried out via the Adulterers Charles, Hoemilla, work shy Willy and his useless wife, Duchess do nothing, Cosplay KKKate. They were supposed to keep Prince Harry from suing the tabloid media. I feel the unholy Royal family paid these Paps to pursue The Sussexes and Doria and was hoping for a deadly crash. This would eliminate Prince Harry’s suit against the tabloid media make them popular and loved by the public. Even if Harry and Meghan weren’t around , they would still be seen as the least popular Royals in the world.
Majority of US cops are MAGA, so they are probably not big fans of H&M. By the time they went to the police for help, the police should have probably driven them instead of telling them to take a cab.
H&M would not give those rota and MAGA idiots new story line if they could have helped it.
The fact that certain media types are searching for ANYONE to refute their story is showing how much they want to take H & M down
The palace is going to stay as they are, as they have supporters who want them to.
Hopefully the videos around NYC will show the Manicas who were chasing the family and arrests can be made!
The City Mayor downplayed the situation and kind of denied everything Harry said happened
Mayor is not a reliable source – he’s former NYPD and transit police and pretty much always defends/parrots the NYPD. Ran as a Dem but is a NYPD apologist – he’s terrible in many ways.
They were looking for the kids. With Doria in town instead of babysitting in Montecito, there is good reason to believe the kids were at the friend’s house with their nanny. They were focused on tailing H&M home. One of the first questions out of that pus ball Piers Morgan’s mouth was the address where they were staying.
My heart just breaks for them. To have such a lovely evening turn so nasty and terrifying is so devastating. And to hunted this way without any thought for their safety or the safety of others is disgusting.
Thé Britsh
The BM and RF will not stop until H&M are DEAD. We saw the same thing happend to Diana and now history sadly is repeating itself. I hope H&M (and their family) find the needed safety. BECAUSE I AM AFRAID FOR THEM.
“It started off with 12 paparazzi, then ended up with four chasing”
According to another gossip site that I visit frequently, a poster very much in the know stated that the “four” who continued chasing the Sussexes were with The Daily Mail and The Sun.
I am so devastated for them too. A night that should have stayed about Meghan’s lovely accomplishment and some fun in NYC (my city) was completely hijacked and became traumatic. My God. The extent to which the BRF/tabloid media barons want to make Harry and Meghan suffer and take away their freedom is horrifying.
(And personally, I am livid that whomever is responsible tried this in my city on our shores to my fellow American, her mom, and her husband. How dare they pull this hateful crap here. I am now done with the monarchy. And I believe Diana was killed.)
Word. The last little bit of my brain that thought no one in England had anything to do with Diana’s death, died after this chase, and I was in my 20s when Diana died.
They took a night where Meghan was being acknowledged for her lifelong work championing women and girls, and frankly, everyone who feels overlooked, and turned it into a terrifying night. Meghan, Harry, and Doria were in a car being chased, and all three of them knew if they died, Lili and Archie would have zero blood relatives who are worth a damn.
It’s revolting. Diana was murdered, and they want to do the same to Harry and Meghan.
The fact they were on the FDR going so fast must have been terrifying. That highway is so stressful to drive even when you’re not being pursued. It’s 3 lanes each way with zero shoulder, curves, tons of potholes and merging traffic every mile or so.
I think the point a large part of this, but not the part the taxi driver was involved in, took place on FDR is vital to the story.
Kate–yeah, it’s a hard call which is worse–the FDR or the Belt Parkway. Both are in horrible shape to begin with–and neither is where you want to be in a chase.
As I said in the other post, Harry has every right to be incredibly triggered by the incident. This wasn’t normal. Most paps these days don’t go to dangerous extremes to get a shot. They’re more sneaky than anything else. They wouldn’t chase a mark for HOURS.
What shot did the paps want that they didn’t have??? What’s the money shot??? That’s what I don’t understand.
If these were just paps chasing them, my guess is they were told there would be a big payoff if they could find out where H&M were staying.
In the docuseries, they’re in NYC a few times and each time they appear to be staying in the same place that I think was listed as being the home of a friend. I wonder if they were staying there again and that’s what the paps were trying to find out.
They were trying to find out where they were staying. It was a private residence. If they found that out, they would have staked out the place for even more photos. Harassed to home owner. Speculated endlessly about the relationship of said home owner and the Sussexes. And if the children were there, it would be fucking CHRISTMAS if they got photos of them as well.
Tom, the money shot is to have the last pictures of HM dying.
I hate that this is now the story, rather than Meghan’s accomplishment.
This pap chasing behavior should be illegal.
Also, I hate to say this but in a way, doesn’t it seem like it would be better to drive “normally” while being followed, even if it means your place of lodging will be revealed, than to race around Manhattan at 80 MPH for two hours? I mean, a car chase is just so risky. Especially considering Diana—the whole thing is outrageously f*ed up.
@TeamMeg they did not race around Manhattan for two hours at 80 mph. The 80 mph was only on one of the highways they were on for a while. H&M have security who I’m sure are trained to evade people chasing them. It doesn’t sound like the people were following at a respectful distance and driving safely etc.
@TeamMeg: I can understand their security team and driver taking evasive action too. How do they know who is stalking them in a bunch of cars with blacked out windows? How do they know what their pursuers’ intentions are? Is it to kill anyone in particular, kidnapping? Who knows? It sounds like they tried to evade these people for safety first, not necessarily to keep their address private. Then, I read yesterday that they went to a police station. All those actions sound like they were done for safety reasons.
Absolutely – they all posed for tons of photos at the event, but those photos would not be as valuable as, say, info about where they are staying or photos of the children. The BM are very insistent that H and M are unpopular and isolated, so they want to expose and if possible punish any powerful allies that might help them. It’s awful.
The media might also have wanted photos of them looking unhappy or upset in the car to bolster the “Sussex marriage in trouble/ Harry come back” narrative that the British tabloids keep pushing. Maybe hoping to rain on their wedding anniversary?
Did you see that had a photog on Good Morning Britain and actually said this “Could be the last picture of P. Harry alive and I got it & that to me is worth millions”
And when Diana had her ‘accident’, weren’t the media taking pictures while she lay dying?
One pap said the ‘money shot’ was that he might get the last ever picture of Harry. Of Meghan. Of Doria. I interpret that to mean they were thinking he could, maybe even would, die. Or that one of them would.
In the minds that are arranging all this, they are not human beings, they are a commodity and everyone is trying to make money off them. I refused to see pictures when Princess Di was dying, but I do know pics were taken.
It freaks me out (so I can only imagine how H,M&D feel) that a pap would say that out loud. But that’s the money shot you were asking about @TOM
@teammeg this is part of a disturbing narrative that has sprung up – that H and M were stunt driving or speeding recklessly, or that somehow they “deserved” to be chased by paparazzi because of their actions. Their experienced security teams (in this case supported by the local police) made the call to try to mitigate a real threat, and I don’t think it’s helpful for people who are not trained or experienced in such matters (I’m definitely not) to try to comment on a situation we know nothing about.
The dangerous speeds mentioned in the reports are more of an illustration of how relentless those who pursued them must have been, and how reckless they were to chase at such speeds, especially driving on sidewalks etc. Thank goodness there were no injuries reported – this time.
I think we have to shift our thinking from H and M as merely celebrities contending with being famous or promoting a film and more on the level of global political leaders who face potentially more danger. I’m trying to imagine if my country’s leader and his wife were pursued by unmarked vehicles while driving home from an event. You bet your ass I would think it’s appropriate for their security to take evasive action and try to get away to protect their principles. I would also expect the perpetrators to be punished to the fullest extent of the law. If this had happened to William and Kate, I would say the same. Nobody deserves to be harassed in this way.
That’s why the BM keeps invoking the Kardashians with H&M, calling M ‘an influencer’ they want to decouple the Sussexes from their place in BF and insist they are crying wolf and attention seekers. They want to flood the zone with the bots and negative comments to make it look that H&M have no support, make people ‘tired’ of H&M when M’s only been seen in public a couple of times this year. That’s why BM freaked out at Germany for Invictus red carpet treatment. Some rr even said outright they shouldn’t be treated like a head of state, how dare they, blah, blah, blah.
When they switched to the yellow cab, their original suv went in a different direction. They hoped the paps would follow it. But the paps saw them switch. It was an attempted diversion tactic. I’m mind blown that the cops confronted them but then allowed them to leave and ignore them. They should have been arrested on the spot.
That part really needs to be explained.
@hamsterjam, which part?
The part about them switching into the taxi as a diversion tactic. I think people are getting confused about that (not HamsterJam) and think they went into the cab bc they thought it would be safer. They went into the cab bc they were hoping the paps would follow their SUV.
If you think Harry didn’t demand for their arrest or some action be taken, I have a bridge to sell you.
Also, we do not have all the facts. No one knew about this until the Sussexes released a statement. I have another bridge to sell you if you think their head of security went on tv without authorization.
Harry is experienced. He advocates for himself and his family. He knows the threat level better than anyone. He doesn’t stand by idly and watch history repeat itself.
I thought that @HamsterJam was saying that the part about the cops “confronting” then allowing the “paps” to leave. At the very least, they should have recorded their identities so that they would know who they were, and where to pick them up later, if necessary.
P.S.: I don’t think they were paparazzi, or if they were, they were highly coordinated.
At that point they were on their best behavior because it was in front of the police precinct.
If they were in their best behavior, they wouldn’t have been confronted. It was a choice by the NYPD. Look what they did to peaceful protesters over the death of Jordan Neely. They pic and choose which laws they want to enforce. But the average person in danger, who cares. Peacefully protest the barbaric treatment of the average person they’ll beat the shit out of you and arrest you.
At that point they were just in the way. They weren’t breaking any laws at that point. Just being obnoxious.
Sorry, ” the cops confronted them but then allowed them to leave and ignore them” that sounds REALLY messed up.
@hamsterjam it is REALLY messed up! I couldn’t believe it when I read it.
I don’t understand why the police didn’t put them in an official marked car and threaten to arrest anyone who continued to follow and harrass. I don’t understand why no one was arrested on the spot for breaking traffic laws or obscuring license plates. New York is a city where cops kill people for selling loose cigarettes and kettle protestors to beat them. You are telling me there was nothing they could do about this except put the Sussexes in a cab?
They were trying to slip away unnoticed. I guess wherever they were staying is someone’s home and they were trying to protect their privacy, especially given what happened to Harry’s ghostwriter. Also, these are public vehicles so the Sussexes have to avoid looking like they are commandeering public resources.
I’ve gone all over the internet to figure out what you mean @MsIam to find out what you mean. What happened to Harry’s ghostwriter? I know he made a story about his ‘biggest fight’ w/Harry, but what happened to the ghostwriter as related to this story?
^^ @Surly Gale, J.R. Moehringer was harassed by a British tabloid reporter at his home, and when dropping his son off at school. These incidents occurred soon after it was leaked that Moehringer was working as a ghostwriter on Harry’s memoir.
Reporters came to his home once they found out who Harry’s ghostwriter was, and one came right up to his window. He asked her who she was and she told him she was a reporter for a paper l can’t remember. It was an upsetting and intrusive time for him and his family, and he said he understood what Harry experienced with the media.
How does this work in NY? My police would have arrested and then deported these Brit hooligan criminals. Murdoch papers are banned here too.
Agree. Police protection, and make arrests: invasion of privacy and endangerment.
The taxi was so not a surprising detail to me. Maybe I’ve seen too many movies, but my first thought was their car was being tracked somehow for the paps to stay on them for so long. An anonymous taxi would be a safer option in that scenario.
They were probably hoping that the paps wouldn’t be able to track them inside a sea of other cabs.
I doubt the security team would have suggested it if they didn’t think it had even a chance of being an improvement in their current situation.
How absolutely awful for them
@SAS, tracked could be the word as the sht bags in the press put tackers on Harris girl friends car in the UK
Yep, and that was after the stop at the police station, so that was likely a tactic discussed there.
When page 6, TMZ and Max Foster are the ones reporting the facts, which support exactly what the Sussexes said, while the BBC, Nicholas Witchell and royalists are all over the news speaking with zero empathy and blaming the victims, it’s pretty clear the UK media is in hell. Like the deepest pits of hell. So as not to despair, I did see the segment on ABC last night with David Mueller and it was factual and sympathetic. There was a clip of Adams, Scobie, and even an eyewitness who saw them leave and said she wasn’t surprised considering how the paparazzi were behaving. The contrast between the American reporting on this versus the British reporting is giving whiplash. Again, the majority, not all, of the IK media is in the pits of hell. It cannot be taken seriously.
The reporting on CBS evening news was pretty factual as well, and actually broke down the 2-hour time period. What I don’t understand is the doing it for attention bad faith people, as if Megan hadn’t already garnered global attention for her gold dress earlier in the evening. I don’t know if I believe this was some sort of hit squad, but I absolutely believe that they realized when they saw Doria with Harry and Meghan that the kids had a good chance of being with them. Which is why they felt it was worthwhile to follow them for 2 hours to try to see where they were staying so that they could stalk outside and potentially get pictures of them leaving with the kids, the nanny leaving with the kids, or Doria leaving with the kids.
If it was just about finding out where they were staying, they would have followed unobtrusively and staked the place out.
@Dee(2) I did not think of that, yes pics of the kids would have make so much money
So, the people in the media who snidely pushing the “doing it for attention” narrative think that either 1) Harry, one of the most written-about and photographed royals, seeks more attention (on a night when the Sussexes were already getting attention), 2) Harry would recreate his mother’s death ride? 3) Harry and/or Meghan would choose to endanger each other and risk making their kids orphans, 4) Meghan would endanger her beloved mother’s life, 5) Either of the Sussexes would endanger their driver and security guards’ lives, as well as any pedestrians or other drivers? Even if someone doesn’t like Meghan, they can’t escape the fact that no one would step on their own award night in this way.
Let’s not forget that they would then have us believe that the Sussexes would give photographs of their ordeal to the Daily Mail and other newspapers in England? You know, the same ones that Harry was suing, that they refused to work with before? The people who would believe such convoluted narratives, would say it was raining if you piddled on their legs.
@OriginalMich Agreed. This was a message from the British media to Harry and that message was “we can get to you and your family anytime we want to”.
They are trying to make him back down from the lawsuits and agree to play ball with them as part of the invisible contract.
The British outlets saying that they cannot independently confirm any of this when they accept all palace statements without question are just garbage. Including the BBC. The victim blaming and shaming is off the charts over there.
Peter Hunt pointed this out last night, saying he looked forward to the BBC independently confirming palace reports in the future.
Agreed. I’ve been so disgusted by the majority of the reporting on this.
I absolutely agree! This was not about pictures, this was all about payback and intimidation.
The NYT had a typical bothsides-ing article. It laid out the timeline more clearly, I think (?) but was really shady about the Sussex statement, getting REALLY stuck on whether it was a “chase” or not. If they were being followed, they were being chased,I would think. But not to the NYT.
The paper also shifted the blame to the Sussexes somehow by implying that moving to America, a bigger country, came with bigger paparazzi interest and that it’s the US media like page 6 and TMZ that pays the biggest bucks for paparazzi shots. The British media was carefully washed out of the picture.
I wasn’t surprised to see the NYT London desk guy as a coauthor on the article 🙄
I really need to keep off social media for a while.
People are saying it was all staged for attention, Meghan notified the paps,she was smiling in the backseat,they weren’t wearing seatbelts.
So much hate .
I don’t know how they live with this shit honestly.
I just hope the truth comes out.
Honestly the world has gone insane over this couple .
The semantics of being followed, stalked, chased are upsetting. The Sussexes tried to escape these guys for over two hours and they were terrified and harassed. This is illegal. The speed is irrelevant—Meghan, Harry and Doria did not want to be followed, they were scared, and the men in van, on motorbikes, and scooters did not follow the law or leave them alone. I hate how this is being reported as “exaggerated” or somehow the Sussexes fault!
Ugh, that guy. I know his wife. She went to school with my husband and me. I’ve met him once. He’s a good writer, but he follows the company line when it comes to reporting on and from the UK. The US is crawling with Brits in print journalism and Anglophilia has set in, with detrimental results.
@JAIS, your so right, the British media are trying so hard to discredit this story, and all because they are sht scared this will impact Harry’s case against them and reinforce it. I hope Harry’s solicitor mentions how the DF and Express published these pictures and then took them down. He can then rightfully ask for the names of the photographers and WHY, if as they are trying to depict themselves as white driven snow, they bought them in the first place, as paying for them was condoning an illegal act
I’m not surprised the American media is basically playing this straight. They don’t want to be associated with this kind of stalking.
(I’m not defending any of the outlets you mentioned. They are awful, however, they aren’t “get a member of the British royal family killed” levels of awful)
The current CNN article says “to be fair,” H&M never said they were in a high-speed chase, and their security people said that H&M weren’t so much worried for themselves as they were for the other drivers and pedestrians.
Which is what their initial statement said. And yet all these “journalists”, even the US ones, don’t seem to give a damn about the bystanders or the cops who could have been injured. No outrage at the risk to their lives, just anger at Harry and Meghan. Does that seem suspicious to anyone? Or maybe if its not a mass shooting no one cares?
@MsIam – They’d care if H&M were the ones driving recklessly. Then it would be all about how the rich and famous are so entitled. Basically, the focus will always be on H&M.
I truly don’t understand the haters. They must lead such small lives, to imagine people would pretend to be in traumatic situations just to get attention.
It is MUCH more likely that the tabloids, who are hurting from Harry’s depositions, are sending out their troops to rattle Harry. I bet the truth about this comes out very soon — he’s back in court soon, right?
I don’t understand them either. What did they think happen? “Megs, dahling, let’s do something truly crazy, and stir shit up!” “Whatever did you have in mind Haz my love?” “Let’s pretend to be in a really scary chase like my mum! We don’t have to actually die though.” “Sounds awful hon, but I’m in!”
Is that how they think H and M work? They haven’t been paying attention.
They are paid trolls, people like Scamantha and Lady CryptKeeper. They are the same lunatics who claim the Sussexes kids are rented for pictures or don’t exist period. The internet has turned into a free for all for grifters and psychopaths but unfortunately as we’ve see their actions have consequences.
Yes, I don’t understand them either! At least not fully, I have a few ideas from looking at a couple of forums (out of curiosity). On one where there are anti-Sussex posters but also some pro-Sussex posters, the pro posters repeatedly said that the Sussex spokesperson never used the term “high speed” (this was before the info about FDR freeway). But several different anti-posters kept using that term in their derision. They willfully ignore facts. I like this site because the discussion here is rational. Even in criticism of the Wales it is factually accurate in support of opinions. As for the anti-Sussex people, it’s no wonder that they are called ‘derangers’.
My issue is that this isn’t the FIRST time that H&M has been out & about in New York in recent months/years…and the paps NEVA acted like THIS…so the variables that’s changed is Charles becoming King & the lawsuits with the putrid Murdoch empire et al ramping up …and THAT makes this situation even MORE dangerous & fraught to me…
Lawd☹️
I think the eagerness for pictures and to know where they were staying in NY this time was because the British press lost money when Meghan didn’t go to the coronation.
I think this was done to scare and intimidate Harry and Meghan for numerous reasons. I also think there is a desperation for new photos of the kids now that they’re officially prince and princess. Other than Lili’s first birthday photo from a year ago and what we saw on the Netflix documentary, the kids have been completely shielded from the public.
Another thing is the British press have been saying that the coronation was the last time that Harry and Meghan were obligated to attend a royal event so it stands to reason why they felt that they needed to send paps to NY as it is was only why to get photos of them in public.
That’s a really good point, Amy Bee. Would explain the vile desperation.
US paps don’t go to this extreme. That’s a Brit pap tactic.
Maybe that’s why TMZ and NY Post are being sympathetic. Brits coming over, going dangerously over the top is fucking up THEIR game. Encroaching on THEIR turf. Taking away from THEIR potential pay days.
What’s confusing is doesn’t Murdoch own a lot of these outlets? So the US version reports the truth and the British version lies, what’s that about?
If his paparazzi were behind this I’d think they would be lying in U.S. too. Which makes me think this was not paparazzi, but private “security” enforcement types.
When TMZ is providing information to confirm what the Sussex spokesperson has said… yeah you know it’s what happened. TMZ is always out for a story and they have shady tactics but they also want to keep working in the US. They are not a pro Sussex outlet.
Lala 11_7 & Amy Bee, I agree with y’all. I’m terrified for them!
If tmz and page six (which constantly trashes the Sussexes) are playing it straight, makes you wonder if Murdoch is trying to distance himself. Or at least his us based media is.
That may be true, Murdoch has much more international reach and business considerations than the Daily Mail does. He isn’t going to carry water for other UK papers even if he is getting sued by Harry like they are, he’ll look out for number one.
This is sickening and annoying and all because the British press and the Royal Family won’t leave them alone.
These were not paps. Paps don’t darken windows amd cover the license plates.This was a well regulated attempt, by professional terrorists,vseeking to intimidate, if not seriously injure or possibly kill the Sussexes. It originates from England and was probably instigated by BP, KP and the the grey suits that killed Diana. And make no mistake, this entire situation is far, far to familiar to us who we’re a live when she as murdered.
Yes! Yes yes yes! This exactly. People calling them “paps”. That’s not what this was.
When I read in People that the taxi driver talked to Piers Morgan and qualified the chase a “crazy hyperbole” by merely spending 10 minutes with the Sussexes, I felt genuinely sad for them that this narrative was circulating. You’re living one of your worst nightmares and derangers use this as a tool to reinforce their agenda. My blood would be boiling if I were them. I wish they release footage and more details about the ordeal. Surprised that TMZ was more sympathetic to them than People too!
There’s a lot of misinformation out there and confusion. The taxi driver was with them for 15min at most while they were on the same block as the precinct. So yeah that part of the “crazy chase” had happened previously. The driver also told Piers Morgan that it was more paps then he’d ever seen with any celebrity in nyc.
I remember seeing part of the transcript of the cab driver’s interaction with Piers, and got the impression that the driver knew something was off too. I actually laughed thinking that Piers was hoping for a pay day “GOTCHA” moment with this conversation, but the driver seems pretty sympathetic towards the situation.
One thing that stood out to me about the Piers Morgan clip and it made my blood chill. On air, he asked the cabbie point blank where did they ask you to take them. He was on air trying to get the cabbie to publicly give up the Sussexes location. Since the cabbie took them back to the precinct, he couldn’t answer but PM was trying to out their location. Scum. Absolute scum.
I saw the guy interviewed this morning on GMA. He said he drove them for 10-15 minutes, that everyone was really tense, and that he’d driven celebrities before & had never seen something like this. The spin the UK rats are putting on this is dizzying.
No doubt there will be consequences for the chasing paparazzis. This should be the end of their ”career”. 😡
Something is going to change, I’m sure, because Harry will not accept this! Thank goodness they came out safe!
Yeah this sounds like either scare tactics by the papers Harry is suing… or something more sinister.
I’m glad they filmed it and are making all the details as public as possible. It’s a good way to scare folks who know who this was into talking.
But good lord. This is so personal. Setting it up in NYC and making it reminiscent of his mothers last moments. These people are sick.
I 100% agree. This was way more than wanting pictures.
I don’t know them , it didn’t happen to me and I am terrified. I keep crying about this because I keep seeing the worst. Thankfully what I keep seeing didn’t happen but that doesn’t make it any less scary. I am so grateful god spared all their lives . May the wrath of god strike with a vengeance on anyone that means this family harm
it’s time to release the footage, either the one that Harry shot or the CCTV ones. People and CNN are already calling it “allege” catastrophic car chase and putting out stories that it was dramatized. that really needs to stop. and why is the NYPD downplaying it when their officers were almost run over???
Let the NYPD conduct their investigation first. I’m sure videos will come out soon enough.
Also, it is standard operating procedure that law enforcement does not comment or issue live updates for an ongoing investigation.
except they’ve already released a statement saying the pursuit was relatively short and led to no injuries, arrests or collisions. which goes against their no comment until full investigation. if they’re going to comment like that, release the CCTV footage.
@snuffles your faith in the NYPD is a surprise to me. Curious, where are you from?
Not commenting on the ‘internals’ or atmosphere of a particular organization, but on standards of certain professions that deal in life and death issues, such as physicians, military, your better journalists at times and law enforcement. It seems the status quo is to ‘let cool heads prevail’. They can’t let much emotion into their professional duties when making announcements to the general public- nature of their professions. You have to wait for the ‘proof in the pudding’ to see behind the professional mask. To see if they do a thorough investigation into what happened.
What in God’s name were these “paparazzi” trying to capture? The kids weren’t with Meghan, Harry and Doria (as far as I know) and all 3 posed on the the red carpet and/or were available for pictures. Unless they were trying to get Harry picking his nose or Meghan getting a wedgie out, this had to be a coordinated, planned attack from someone *cough*. There wasn’t another amazing picture to “get” that wouldn’t have happened at the event.
I absolutely believe the switch from SUV to taxi was a quick thinking security person creating a life saving maneuver. I’ve only been able to read the 1 article here yesterday and this one and I already have that feeling inside that the chasers were going after that SUV and would stop at nothing to get it.
I can’t even imagine, I hope their family is okay and healing. I hope Harry goes ballistic now, let it all rain down dude.
ETA- and I apologize if someone has already said all this and said it better than I could. Like I mentioned, I’m just now catching up and reacting to these articles!
I have no doubt the hooligans wanted to injure pedestrians like Sophie’s motorcade incident and blame HM for it. They already blame HM for not stopping for the hooligans!? And they wanted to be the ones to have the last pictures of HM alive. They are inhuman.
Maybe as l have lived through the troubles in.Northern Ireland ‘where a family friend was shot in seconds’ but l think puttiing Harry, Megan and Doria into.a yellow taxi was a big mistake and could have put them.in a serious dangerous situation. Prince Harry is high risk and this was a advertised event. Those taxi windows are not bullet proof , those roads are handy enough to get in and out off on a motorbike, please don’t do that again.. l acknowledge we don’t know the facts as to why they did this, but in my mind it was a serious error of judgement.
1. Their security would not have left them vulnerable like that.
2. Harry would not have agreed to the plan if he didn’t think there was a good chance of it succeeding.
3. Why are you bringing up bullet-proof glass? How did we go from cameras to glocks?
4. From what I can see, the plan worked. There are no photos of their friend’s residence.
5. How do you know there wasn’t a second switch?
@50-50 this is America. It’s always with the guns. That’s just how it works. Also if you think those well organized, well funded abd highly trained suv drivers abd crew were paps, you need to really think on the logic of that.
And yes. In America it’s constant guns. One day last week there were 5 Nass shootings. She’s 100/% right.
I guess when the Sussexes went into the police station, the NYPD were forced to help. This attempt failed. So now the cover up begins. Some are even claiming the blacked out SUVs were the Sussexes. What these people in high places dont get is that H and M have been covered in prayer since 2018. This attack is all the evidence the Sussexes required for cases already before the court. This was a massive failure implicating many.
Yess! 💯
YES to all of this!
I can only think that this, like the chase after the status unveiling in the UK, will be a one time event because:
The danger is now so public and real there is no way Harry will let it happen again. There will be no more “2 cops escorting them” it will be a proper motorcade, like the one the Ford Fiesta gets when she goes shopping.
The police have seen the danger up close and real.
No way the cops in LA will let this happen at their next event, and no way the cops in NYC will allow it to happen again, and especially no way Harry will not up his security for all public events in future.
That’s where it gets tricky though. The Sussexes are private citizens not official representatives. So there is probably a limit on how much resources can be devoted to them. I’m thinking one police car is probably the max they can get for an escort, otherwise someone will holler about “taxpayers and costs!” and who knows what else. And from a political standpoint for the mayor, he has to be careful of not showing favoritism to visiting celebrities.
It does not get tricky at all. If the United States of America can not guarantee the safety of a private person on a public road attending a very public function, especially when it is know to the world IN ADVANCE that they are a target, do you have any idea how bad that makes us look as a country?
There are several goals at play here. For one, for the majority, the Sussexes will need to have enough money to pay for extreme security. That will likely never go away in their lifetime and will get worse. So it’s putting a financial burden on them. It’s also putting a financial burden on any organization that wants to host them and wants to pay for additional security. The hope is that organizations will not want to host Harry and Meghan due to the logistics. Which means the public will see them less which suits the current royals but not necessarily the BM. Then, there’s just the element of delegitimizing them and saying well if only they hadn’t left. They’re asking for it and it’s their fault. The BM loves that angle of victim shaming and those types of stories. They know it gives people an outlet for hate. The BM knows the Sussexes will not really ever return to the Uk so some of those stories are just giddy royal reporters saying it’s all their fault bc they seek attention. But there’s also just a simple need for revenge, to make Harry and Meghan pay in whatever way possible bc they don’t play the game and especially Harry for his court cases. That cannot be underestimated.
I agree with you, except that I don’t think that organizations who host these sorts of things will balk at all at the extra security costs, double it, triple it, those costs are a drop in the bucket compared to renting the venue, advertising, etc.
In a sick way, it actually draws even more attention to their event, which is the goal anyway.
I can’t even imagine the fear they were feeling.
And why? They were available for photographs coming in and out of the event, and if they were going back to their hotel or whatever, and the paparazzi just HAD to follow, couldn’t they do so safely?
I’m sure they were concerned it was half as a security threat not knowing who is in the cars. It’s a miracle nobody was hurt or killed, including people just out and about.
I really need to keep off social media for a while.
People are saying it was all staged for attention, Meghan notified the paps,she was smiling in the backseat,they weren’t wearing seatbelts.
So much hate .
I don’t know how they live with this shit honestly.
I just hope the truth comes out.
Honestly the world has gone insane over this couple .
I found (purely by chance, had searched a totally unrelated term) the anti-Meghan subreddit last night and make the mistake of reading some of the threads about this. Just horrifying. For some reason it’s easier for me to write off the Twitter crazies, but all the gleeful reddit posts really got to me. I had to stop. It’s just truly twisted and crazy how they see her as this arch villain who controls the puppet strings of the known universe (the very ugliest of all is their conviction she really wants to be a martyr/widow).
I get that there was some confusion in the initial reporting yesterday, but there was such a strong undercurrent and immediate jump to “they’re just being histrionic and making this all up” outside of the hater spaces, it really surprised me. I was grateful to wake up and see the CB posts this morning.
There is a pro Harry and Meghan subreddit also. It isn’t as active but it is well moderated. I never look at the gross deranger one. It is truly terrible!
it’s not just random ppl posting, the smiling in the backseat in multiple pics has made it into news story narratives. it’s been used now to minimize anything they say. tmz also wont’ take down the posts of those pictures bc they aren’t required by law here in the US to do anything. i think there’s a UK law that celebrities cannot be pursued by paps, but not here.
“Her game face”.. this is why someone said “she was even smiling”…it’s her game face. I like how @honeyybrazenhussy describes Meghan in this moment. M is giving them NOTHING but her game face. It’s her ‘mask’ if you will (I prefer @honeybrazen hussy’s term of ‘game face’). Makes full and perfect sense to me that she would give them NOTHING….except her game face.
Not sure what SM you’re on but I’d suggest muting and blocking people. There are so many people on SM calling this hate out and providing receipts.
Well at some point you have to just let it go. As in not let it get to you, don’t get emotionally worked up about it. In a sense just let “the dead bury the dead”. At one time because I thought it must be truly awful to be such awful people as they, it would make me sad for them in a sense in addition to being indignant in defense of those they target. They seemed thoroughly mentally unhealthy and awful to boot. But they seem ‘content’ in the way they are and once I was no longer in a sense sad for them, I realize that all it was is that the world is not as I thought. Crisis and opportunity. Masks are coming off and in a sense you get a chance to see genuineness, whereas before it may have been obscured and obfuscated . In turn you get to have a renewed vigor in appreciation for the good and the good you find in people. This can lift you and get you past any discomfort that there are some unfortunate, not-so-nice folks out there!
They always keep receipts. Right now they are plotting with their legal team on the response. They won’t be rushed into showing their hand and will let the British “press” spew their hate. One day they’ll file their lawsuits, release their footage and collect their dollars.
I think there’s a bigger strategic picture at work here. The incident happened on Tuesday night, from 10pm to 12am eastern. From what I can see on twitter, the Sussexes issued the statement around 10am the following morning; it was then picked up internationally and became part of the day’s news cycle.
The important thing, however, is that the Sussexes waited until AFTER the Daily Mail and Daily Express posted the photos. I’m pretty sure that was intentional.
I agree with you. They wanted to see who bought the pictures.
I’m sure Harry and Meghan’s lawyers will be in on this. It funny the only pictures they published were the taxi cab photos. How would the paps know they were there at the police precinct (where they picked up the cab) unless they were followed? And the fact that both of those stories were taken down so quickly really tells on them. The pictures to me confirm the story because we have video of them getting into the SUV after the award show. So the tabloids provided their own smoking gun.
Yep. This is more evidence that can be used to show the illegal tactics used by the BM are ongoing. So much for that “we totally stopped illegal tactics back in 2011” bs the BM is trying to sell to the Courts.
Please understand, I am not questioning if the event occurred. But, having lived close to NYC for years, I’m questioning how this was handled by the police dept and the city.
At most publiced events, they stage everything from garbage trucks to fire engines nearby. You want to stop a chase? Back an unbelievably heavy garbage truck into the street or the fire engine across 4- 6 lanes. I’ve seen it work! (Houston does it with tow-trucks)
Also, since when are the drivers just “talked to”? Who was being paid to look away?
It almost seems like the Police were staged
I saw jackasses responding to Omid Scobie’s tweet about the event yesterday, asking why the police hadn’t arrested anyone, why they were not coming out and confirming how bad it was. Also doing things like posting pictures of stopped, clogged traffic in NYC and saying a car chase couldn’t happen in that city.
I knew that of course it can. Traffic is not always thick in NYC. I’ve been in cabs more times than I can count that have driven fast, bobbing and weaving through other cards on one of the streets that goes one way either north or south (like 3rd avenue or Lexington). I’ve driven in the city myself, too, where bikers just zip around cars like maniacs, almost getting themselves hit (this is not a knock on all bikers, just the ones who are not careful). I could picture the chase and how terrifying it must have been for everyone, including the pedestrians who might have been in way of the chasers.
And it was partly on the FDR drive? That absolutely makes sense! It’s basically a highway. Traffic moves very fast on there. I’ve seen a car on the other side flip over because it was speeding. It’s multi-lane. A chase could happen there. I’m sure many police chases HAVE happened there.
This just makes my blood boil. As a supporter of H and M, as someone who believes there was foul play involved with Diana’s death, and as someone who has lived in NYC and has family there, who wouldn’t want them injured because some deranged paps would do anything for a picture or to shake up their prey and possibly get them hurt or killed.
As for the cops? They are not going to lay all of their cards on the table on this. They are probably still looking into it. We might never know from them the whole story, but I guarantee you they are pissed. At the same time, this is New York. They have a lot on their plate all of the time, so this isn’t going to be a major shock to them nor will it be their first priority.
If you’re traveling on the FDR or even the BQE at that time of night, you can reach high rates of speeds. Car crashes have occurred on those highways due to speeding. I’m hoping that the NYPD and whatever other agency needs to be involved are conducting their investigation, and the truth will come out about this. I guarantee that they do not like what happened and can’t afford to have something like this occur again in New York where if they get away with this once, they can get away with it again. This situation makes me livid that innocent people, and not just the passengers in the car, could have been injured or killed as a result of this reckless unconscionable behavior.
Also, just in general, a chase does not have to be high speed. Yes its usually implied that there is some speed or urgency to it, but four cars following them for several blocks (through heavy traffic) could have alerted their security who then tried to shake the cars and could not, no matter how or where they drove, etc, and then they ended up on FDR to try to shake them and could not.
And when you consider it sounds like it wasnt just cars, but there were paps on motorcyles as well, it just adds to the chase.
This. How many police cars were chasing the Ford Bronco? That was not high speed.
I don’t read a lot of Sussex news (not a hater just not into royalty), but I just have to comment that Meghan looks absolutely fantastic in that dress. She really just looked smashing.
I think the public should be alarmed by the way these paparazzi (or whoever they were) were driving, because they could have easily killed a pedestrian or someone else based on the description of the driving. This wasn’t super late at night and the weather is nice in NYC right now. Lots of people out. FDR Drive is adjacent to a public park that runs the entire length of the Hudson River. This happening in Manhattan is very crazy. People are understandably focused on what could have happened to H&M and Doria, but honestly this could have ended up killing a random person and people should be outraged by that.
I just don’t understand why they were followed so aggressively. They’ve been in NY so many times before. Were they that desperate to know where they were staying? I think they really wanted to scare them or have their driver injure pedestrians or other motorists. The nasty reaction from the UK and others is disgusting. I hope they have a thorough review of their security plans when they go out. I don’t think switching to the taxi was a good idea and made things more confusing especially with that driver not being vetted and blabbering all over the press. Anyway hope they are not deterred from living their lives as they see fit and hope they are ok. Was such a great night for Meghan and just angry it was ruined that way.
I would say that they’re ramping up these aggressive attacks for intimidation over Harry’s court cases. The BRF and media are running scared. And in no way do I believe this was just paparazzi, not with those blackened windows and obscured license plates. This was a sophisticated and sinister tactic and too lengthy a period of time following the Sussexes for paps who just wanted some more photos. They were gunning for them in more ways than one.
The taxi idea was probably some cockamamie idea by the NYPD and H&M probably felt desperate enough to try “something.” I agree it was a bad idea. They should have probably just pulled into a garage somewhere and could have then changed cars or gone out a different exit into a different vehicle.
Or, as another commenter suggested, go to a hotel, stay there for a couple of hours, and then leave by a back exit. But that would only be successful if they weren’t followed there.
Agree with Feeshalori. It’s the lawsuits Harry’s got going in the UK. That’s the difference. He is getting to them, chipping away, and this is how they fight back.
I understand the point of the taxi – or the idea of it – as a diversion tactic, hoping the paps wouldn’t follow – but it does seem really unsafe to put them in a car with a driver who is not trained in evasion maneuvers or tactical driving and just kind of hope for the best. Maybe that’s why they went back to the station so fast – once they realized the tactic didn’t work they returned.
ETA and yes completely agree with the point about a bystander being injured. That was a very real possibility. I wonder if they were hoping someone got hurt and then the press could write about H&M’s murderous night out for months to come.
The BM and RF will not stop until H&M are DEAD. We saw the same thing happend to Diana and now history sadly is repeating itself. I hope H&M (and their family) find the needed safety. BECAUSE I AM AFRAID & WORRIED FOR THEM.
People want to doubt this about H&M because they want to say they lie or exaggerate about everything including the hell they endured in “the firm”. I hope this doesn’t scare them from going out and living their best lives (which I believe this paparazzi attack was intended to do). I hope their security team comes up with a plan that will prevent this from happening again. On CNN they had so many police sources say how awful it was so I hope people believe that over a taxi driver who came in the last 10 minutes and was like “what’s the problem”?
The Industrial Meghan Hate Complex, more people shout louder “everything she says is a lie” than shouted about Trump – when almost everything he says is an actual lie.
I think they are the same people
Megs represents the epitome of their loss of white privilege
One specific side element to all of this that’s really infuriating to me was the initial “well, NYPD says nothing happened, so that’s that” response. … as if there’s not a known (not insignificant) segment of the force that seem to relish in doing very little or nothing at all. Or as if there’s not a known phenomenon of any police force downplaying anything that might seem to imply they didn’t do the most awesomest job ever. Nope. Their first ” we’re not sure yet” statement (that was more CYA than anything) was just wholly accepted as proof H/M were lying about it all.
I feel so bad for them. Getting abused and then being called attention seeking when all you’re trying to do is exist and survive….maybe even get to a point where you can thrive only to have your life devalued to such a point that your abusers can justify endangering your life and somehow still blame you. Anyone I have come to know who’s a fan or defensive of the brutish rubbish/racist family (that’s what I call the BRF now) is a white supremacist because condoning what’s been going on since a woman of color came into the picture is exactly what a racist would do.
I can’t even fathom all the emotions they are going through after such a great night. Then watching news coverage and sometimes it probably feels like the Sussexes against the world. Obviously there’s tons of support and they have a great group of friends as well.
I don’t want this to sound callous but I don’t think Harry will win the judicial review and I’ll be glad. Because maybe then it will really cement their next steps away from the toxicity in the UK.
I know they’ll be back for Well Child but other than that I hope they avoid the royals who started all this hate.
Based on your reasoning Jilly, if I’ve read what you wrote correctly, you are suggesting H&M make their lives smaller. Like the BRF told M to be 50% less of who she truly is, you seem to be suggesting they should lose the court case to cement their next steps away from the toxicity in the UK. Jilly, they’ve done ALL that already.
They’ve been ‘avoiding the royals’ already. H went to corn for 2 hours!! M has only been seen a couple (3) time in 2023. How much smaller should their lives get, do you think?
I believe that Harry and Meghan have video footage of their encounter with the paparazzi (if that is who they were). I hope after the investigation is completed we see first hand what they experienced. As a Sussex Supporter I hope for the day that they dismantle the BM and expose the RF.
These paps or whatever they are seemed pretty familiar with NY city to be driving that confidently, and if they are British they would have been unfamiliar with driving on the opposite side of the road. I’d say this was a coordinated effort between British and American paps who may even have hired drivers trained in evasive, aggressive driving moonlighting for extra money. The blacked out windows and covered up license plates reeks of someone very high up with a huge axe to grind spending that kind of money to chased the Sussexes down like hunted animals. It’s sickening and I hope the parties who perpetrated this are found out and locked up for a very long time.
That’s a good point – the blacked out windows, license plates and the level of coordination is the most unnerving for me, but it also means significant $$$ behind it. A dozen vehicles of different types must have been in constant communication with each other, or at the very least trained in these tactics. That indicates an organization with deep pockets.
It beggars belief that that number of freelance paparazzi would all have the same sudden inclination to follow the Sussexes in unmarked vehicles all at the same time, independent from each other. It’s also interesting that they were outwardly harassing H and M at all. If they were just after information or photos of their children, why would they do that so openly and noisily? As horrifying as it is to contemplate, why not secretly tail them to get the name of their friends or try to get photos with a long lens? It seems like that would have resulted in a much bigger payday and less risk to one’s livelihood. If the only motivation were money, something doesn’t add up there.
We saw how most of the paparazzi reacted to the person who hurled insults earlier in the night at Meghan – most of the American paps know this kind of thing is bad for their business. If large cities like NYC or LA start to tighten regulations on paps as a result of this incident, it could hurt their whole industry. It seems like those chasing H and M were trying to target and harass them specifically. I don’t believe they were run of the mill paparazzi, that’s for sure.
This really was a new low for the British tabloids (which is saying something). They are despicable.
We were watch the BBC news last night and were amazed at the gaslighting. They really were given their talking points. They had some dried-up commentator saying, not that the Sussexes were LYING per se, but perhaps EXAGGERATING. Also, everyone was shaking their heads over them getting into a taxi…as my spouse, who lived in NYC for years, said, NYC cabbies are the best in the world at evading and getting out of messes. It wasn’t a bad choice. The whole thing just SMELLS…If someone wasn’t trying to kill them, they could have been trying to frighten them.
Every NYC yellow cab I’ve ever been in the drivers have been adept at finding the best fastest routes. I may have been careering from left to right in the back seat, but by golly they know what they’re doing!
The need to discredit H&M’s words about what happened after the awards ceremony is rooted in the push to discredit everything that was said about the Windsors in the Oprah interview, the Netflix doco and in Spare.
The rush to create doubt about H&M”s experience (BBC coverage most egregious) has been truly sickening. The inhumanity displayed by media talking heads such as Joe Scarborough and Willie Geist has been equally disgusting. I can only assume that had something catastrophic happened to H&M that these media personalities would blame them for bringing it on themselves.
There was a very clear and concerted effort by much of the BM to discredit the Sussexes. BBC for sure. Nicholas Witchell said they were exaggerating. They try to be cute an say of course this bothered Harry who was traumatized by what happened to his mom, which is true but they’re not bringing that up bc they care but bc it’s part of their efforts to discredit. I’m not into it at all. People can be traumatized, have mental health issues and still be absolutely correct in saying that this is not okay. They haven’t lost that right. Relentlessly being pursued is not okay. But they want to say he’s mentally ill and paranoid like his mom and is therefore exaggerating and lying and not a reliable narrator. It’s all a tactic from the BM. To watch how hard they’re going at this is like watching a dying people try and survive. They’re working this like it’s their last breath and it’s telling. Tells you how terrified they are of the Sussexes.
I wonder whether they didn’t make contact because they don’t want to see or admit that H&M need a lot of security, which has always been an issue and particularly recently with H&M’s trips to family events in the UK; almost like reaching out would validate H&M’s genuine concerns for themselves and their family. I can’t imagine not talking to one of my kids after an event like this.
Yes, making a call to them would give a tacit understanding that the Sussexes do need additional security in the UK, which they’re not going to give.
This makes me physically sick. I am so worried for them. And why aren’t there any arrests!!
They posed on the red carpet, none of this was necessary. This made my stomach turn. It’s sinister as hell
Who can blame them for still being upset? I’m upset and shaken and I wasn’t even there. Even the footage at the 19th precinct where they’re in the cab and all the flashbulbs going off (SO MANY flashbulbs) would’ve been triggering, especially for Prince Harry. I hope they’re okay.
I also have a feeling that PH filming them with his phone is footage that’s going directly to his lawyer. It would be great if he identifies the paparazzi and their employers.
Same here. I’m upset and pissed about what happened and how it’s being reported. I’m outraged for Harry, Meghan and Doria. I’m still trying to gather my thoughts and not engage in any conversations because I will totally lose my cool and get really nasty.
Let’s hope that they’ve returned home to Montecito where they can feel peace. I also hope some good comes from this, like it strengthens PH’s case against the tabloids.
I’m really irritated by the pure gaslighting going on about this event. Harry & Meghan’s spokespeople said it was “near-catastrophic,” but then people said “high-speed chase” and “near-fatal collisions” and twisted the shit out of their statement. Tabloids claimed the NYPD “downplayed” the incident by describing reckless behavior but no collisions or injuries… which doesn’t downplay or contradict what the Sussex spokespeople said at all.
So everyone’s claiming they’re being dramatic or overreacting and it wasn’t a “chase” at all (as if a chase can only be high-speed), when Harry & Meghan themselves never said any of that shit.
Dehumanizing their legitimate concerns over reckless behavior says more about the people doing it than Harry & Meghan themselves. Driving on sidewalks, obstructing escorts, ignoring traffic laws–all of that is dangerous behavior. It could absolutely have been a catastrophe. If anyone bother to read the actual statement, there’s no exaggeration.
I agree. I’m seeing people saying they shouldn’t have put out that statement. Maybe to nitpick I would have said dangerous instead of catastrophic but they never said high speed chase or that they were hurt. That was the tabloids. What’s scary is that this is being used to discredit them or say that they just want drama. All they did was get in the car and try to get to the house they were staying at. It’s frustrating that every time they seem to be moving on with their lives away from the UK, getting their flowers, something involving the UK press or royals drags them back under and chips away at them. It makes me so angry and it puts so much pressure on them. They should have a thorough security review but this hasn’t happened before on all their previous trips, which makes it so suspicious. I don’t understand how this event has been so distorted and used to attack them. It’s tiring having to be constantly resilient and strong and dealing with pile on after pile on. I wish them a happy anniversary, that they get some peace and healing, forge a new contingency plan and keep supporting each other because they have had a lot of impressive achievements and so much more to contribute.
I agree with everything you said. I’m a fan of theirs and I’m exhausted. I can’t imagine what it’s like for them. I was listening to Dr. Gabor and he talks about the aftermath of his talk with Harry. His friend said when he talked to him after he felt defeated, frustrated and misunderstood. He now saw first hand what Harry was up against. He said the British media twisted his words and brought so much hate. Same thing JR said…
I know Meghan has her award next week so they’ll be out again but I really hope they’ve found a way to shut out the noise. No matter what they say or how they would have said it their words would have always been twisted and misinterpreted. Just because of the connection to Diana’s accident. Harry and Meghan have to be perfect and even in perfection that are completely torn apart. That’s the nature of the hate campaign.
I imagine their team is just as exhausted. I hope they all go on a great vacation somewhere to just be.
I know it’s frustrating. Good and decent people should be allowed to live their lives and do their good works. There are the heroic in this world but unfortunately there are also villains.
It’s like when a loved one is in distress, often we worry more for them than they do for themselves! I have faith and confidence that both Harry and Meghan will meet this with strength and resiliency. They are many times blessed and this will only bolster them to fight for what’s right.
For sure they get way more attention than what the average person has knowledge of. I imagine at some point you have to be pretty Zen about it. As Bruce Lee said “Be like water … adjust … find a way around or through it.” I think “crisis and opportunity” when I am confronted with things. How can I turn this around? How can I use this for The Good?
This is so scary and needs to be invesigated by their teams. Also there is a lot of astrological stuff going on in solar system right now so current energy is dangerous. Stay safe, everyone.
I’m so livid this happened to them. I wonder if it’d be safer for them to travel by helicopter in NYC at this point.
The taxi driver is so chill, yet casually mentions that their progress was stopped by a garbage truck which just happened to be blocking their way so the blacked out cars could catch up with them.
Maybe I’ve seen one to many Hollywood moves, but that detail gave me chills.
I think you’ve watched one too many Hollywood movies like you said, that’s just NYC traffic lol. Garbage trucks are just routinely causing delays.
Also it’s not enough for only the NYPD to investigate: the FBI, CIA, and/or homeland security need to be involved. At the end of the day this was a foreign plot (likely even a foreign governmental plot) to harm Americans on US soil. Eff anyone who is trying to diminish this.
I thought the British tabloids complain that Harry and Meghan are over-exposed fame wh*res whom nobody care about? If that’s the case, then why are the paparazzi so horribly desperate to pap them? After all, their pages should be FILLED with photos and articles of the much more popular and dynamic, new, “Fab Four” royals, right? RIGHT??
I am afraid that once more the Sussexes have to deal with being victim-blamed. There is a price to pay when one who dealt with bullying decides to assert himself/herself, this is no exception and I am happy that they have released a statement.
Now there are the usual finger-pointing and gaslighting with a new addition “semantics” from people who usually publish unedited and poorly written articles in an effort to dis them.
Who gave them the right to label the Sussexes’ emotions?
But, sadly there is a pattern in place and it unfolded as expected, it is disheartening who have contributed to fragmentation of the economy and poverty of the working class by being untrue about Brexit – are at it again with the Sussexes.
They created a public climate that facilitated the toxic working environment for the Sussexes, in an effort to gain control of their image and personal narrative – to no avail.
Consequently they left and is thriving, and that seems to be the problem..
One thing one of Harry’s security detail (as told to CNN) and many New Yorker agreed on is that this was unprecedented – the aggressive and feral paps who ruined about seven cars driving around the block while they were still at the event.
While this response to this experience was vile from the expected; it is important to note that the Sussexes’ did not choose silence.
I applaud their continued bravery…
The nerve of the propagandists; thinking they have a say in other people’s reality….
(An aside, I do not care about the pap need to make money, it is triggering remembering similar language used when Princess Diana died.)
What do we know about the wrecked cars? If those 7 darked out cars ran into parked cars that is a crime and should be super easy to verify by the paint and dents.
Those cars should now be super easy to track down if they were rented and if they were not rented then we know this was a really big money operation, no way it was paps.
The New York city mayor trying to downplay the utter FAILURE of NYPD to respond appropriately to this incident is what is sticking in my caw. Trying to cover up for the ineptitude of his officers has been ridiculous.
Or, they are covering up a payoff
The level of parasocial fervor around H&M is frightening on both sides. It is not healthy or normal to care this deeply about people you don’t know…whether it’s obsessive hate or obsessive idolization. In both cases, you are treating real human beings like nothing more than props on which you can drape your fantasies.
This is the same crap that did Diana in. Do you think the paps chased her because they HATED her? No. They chased her because they felt entitled to her. They chased her because people all over the world wanted stories and photos about everything she was doing. They chased her because she was a commodity, not a human being.
THIS.
It’s hard to not feel somehow complicit. While these tactics are obviously extreme, the celebrity gossip industry is all interconnected and it’s damaging. American paps have a long history of stalking and chasing celebs. We all feed into it (myself included) every time we consume celebrity gossip media. If there wasn’t such a big appetite to see and discuss the happenings of famous people, this kind of thing would have no financial reward for photogs and it would stop happening. Something to think about? I certainly think so!
The british media are ignoring everything that is being said in the USA. Insulting the Police Department, Security people, Journalists and publishing the opposite to what happened. Basically calling US Police, Politicians and Journalists all liars. The BRF bots are out in force as are the vile royal trash writers who call themselves journalists and royal experts. They are making the already ugly BRF, uglier. The BRF shold be hanging their heads in shame, they are so full of their own self importance they have forgotten that first and foremost Harry and Meghan are living breathing human beings, with feelings who also have two beautiful children. You do not have to like your relatives but trying to destroy and eradicate them, says everything about you. Have the BRF become so deluded, that they believe we have all regressed 200 years and should be obeying their every whim and demeaning edicts.
They don’t call the British royal family THE FIRM for nothing-there is meaning behind that term-I will say this to the end of time-THIS WAS A COORDINATED ATTACK OF INTIMIDATION-Whether they were home on Monday at 2am I don’t know-but some disgusting person was outside their home starting bullshit and got arrested-then the events in NYC-both were coordinated-to the Brits-why try to force people to back into the fold with all the shit that has been said on both sides-all the shit that has been done mostly by the Salty Isle side-All this shit is going down in the history books and all sides will have their say but they better have facts not just thoughts and feelings-If the royal family has anything to do with this-King Charles and his senior court are the most evil bastards in history.
I also feel really bad for them. They were having such an amazing night and they’re beginning to drown out the Hate campaign coming out from the UK as all their positive influences have been outshining the negativity . And this happened. The BP are just absolutely vile and trying to manipulate the whole situation to discredit HM and call them liars.
But you know things happen for a reason. I’m hoping the real facts will circulate instead of the British Media’s BS. And show those idiots on the other side of the pond that they’re all just pathetic Bullies who can’t survive without them.
As I write this you know what – everything about HM and #LoveWins for HM are trending on Twitter right now. And so is #toxicbritishmedia.
Harry and Meghan still has a lot of support out there . The BM and BRF can brainwash people in the Uk but not the US!
I emailed the mayor’s office. I doubt he cares but it made me feel better. The previous mayor would have had a better response.
I love M&H but this story seems….off. I honestly think they need to go under cover for a while because benevolence had for them is turning into something sinister now.
This did not just start. This started at the engagement and before. If they go under cover the abuse by some in media would not go away.
The only thing “off” has been the same set of obsessed haters who are cherry picking information and using racist tropes referencing Jessie Smollet.
I don’t think they should hide away. I think that’s actually a bad idea. However they may need to address this more directly because there are distortions that are being solidified, like the getting into that taxi. The driver is giving the impression everything was fine but he was only involved after they switched cars. Also things they never said like high speed chase are showing up in reports. This was a frenzy not seen before on their previous trips and they’re gonna need a new playbook moving forward. I hope there is some reassurance that they are ok after the initial shock of this incident and wish we could get more information from their team. Just no idea what’s going on.
The taxi driver has been enjoying his 15 minutes of fame and has spoken to several different news agencies, and what he said has been selectively edited according to the agenda of each news outlet.
I wonder if the poor guy understands how much he is being used.