Jury: Diana's Death Unlawful

LONDON, England (CNN) -- The jury in the Diana, Princess of Wales inquest Monday returned a verdict of unlawful killing through negligent driving of her car and the following paparazzi vehicles.

Diana, Princess of Wales, died in a Paris car crash on August 31, 1997.

The coroner in the inquest into the deaths of Princess Diana and her boyfriend, Dodi Fayed, earlier Monday told the jury their verdict did not have to be unanimous.

Coroner Lord Justice Scott Baker told the 11 jurors that he would accept a verdict if nine of them agreed. The jury had been deliberating since April 2.

The British inquest into the August 31, 1997, deaths began in October after a decade of British and French police investigations and French court proceedings. The jury's role was to determine how the victims died; it had no authority to blame any individual.

The jury's first task, following six months of testimony, was to decide whether French investigators got it right within days of Diana's death when they concluded that her speeding driver, Henri Paul, was drunk. Photo See gallery of images related to Diana inquest.

The second issue for the six women and five men was whether the paparazzi who chased the princess around Paris bore a heavy responsibility for the deaths.

Baker had previously asked for unanimous verdicts on both deaths, but said a majority verdict could be accepted if the jury was deadlocked.

In his summing up on April 2, Baker told the jury to consider whether Diana and Fayed would have lived if they were wearing seat belts and whether Diana would have survived had she been taken to the hospital faster.

Baker said there was "no evidence" that the British secret service -- or any other government agency -- had anything to do with the crash, as Fayed's father has alleged.
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The inquest is the official British inquiry into the deaths of the princess and Fayed in a Paris car crash August 31, 1997, while they were fleeing paparazzi photographers. It began October 2 and has already cost more than $6 million of taxpayers' money.

More than 240 witnesses have given evidence, including Diana's close friends, Prince Philip's private secretary, a former head of the Secret Intelligence Service and Diana's former butler, Paul Burrell.

CNN