Coroner’s Examination Of Diana’s Death Begins

LONDON (January 8, 2007) — The British coroner’s inquest into the deaths of Princess Diana and her boyfriend, Dodi Fayed, is under way in a London courtroom.

It’s the start of the final step in the investigation of their deaths in a Paris car crash nearly ten years ago.

The coroner will take into account the official British police report into the crash, which was issued last month. The report said the deaths were an accident, but the final ruling is up to the coroner.

Inquests are routine in Britain whenever someone dies unexpectedly, violently, or in suspicious circumstances.

The hearing today is mostly procedural, and the full inquest is expected to happen later this year.