Woman Who Killed 2 Girls, 8, After Crashing an SUV onto School Grounds to Face Trial

Nuria Sajjad and Selena Lau, students at the Study Preparatory School in London, died after Claire Freemantle, 49, crashed her vehicle into a school party

NEED TO KNOW

• Claire Freemantle will face trial after she crashed an SUV into the grounds of an elementary school in London, killing two 8-year-old girls and injuring seven people
• The incident took place at an end-of-semester lawn party at the Study Preparatory School in Wimbledon, London on July 6, 2023
• Police said in 2024 that Freemantle had suffered an epileptic seizure and wouldn’t face any criminal charges, but they reopened the investigation after the girls’ families raised concerns

A woman who crashed an SUV into the grounds of an elementary school in the U.K., killing two students and injuring seven people, will face trial next year, according to multiple reports.

Claire Freemantle, 49, was driving the vehicle when it crashed into a lawn party held to celebrate the end of the semester at the Study Preparatory School in Wimbledon, a suburb of London, on July 6, 2023, the BBC reported on Tuesday, July 14.

Two 8-year-old girls, Nuria Sajjad and Selena Lau, died in the crash.

Their families paid emotional tributes to them at the time, calling Nuria a “kind and generous” child who “embodied joy” and Selena an “intelligent” and “cheeky” girl who was “adored and loved by everyone,” per the Wimbledon Guardian.

Freemantle, who lives in Wimbledon, was charged with two counts of causing death by dangerous driving and seven counts of causing serious injury by dangerous driving after authorities reinvestigated the incident, the Metropolitan Police said in a statement on May 1.

Freemantle appeared in court in London on Tuesday. She only spoke to confirm her identity and was not asked to enter any pleas, per the BBC.

Previously, according to the Wimbledon Guardian, lawyers for Freemantle said that she would plead not guilty.

Freemantle has been accused of killing the girls, as well as causing serious injury to Smera Chohan, Nuria’s mother, and Tamsyn Van De Vyver, the mother of another student.

Also injured in the crash were another mother and her 7-month-old infant, as well as two 8-year-old girls and a 7-year-old girl, the BBC reported.

The case is set to go to trial on Sept. 6, 2027, per the outlet.

Originally, in June 2024, it was decided that no further action would be taken against Freemantle.

Per the Wimbledon Guardian, police said the driver of the car had suffered an epileptic seizure and wouldn’t face any criminal charges.

However, the families of Nuria and Selena raised concerns, prompting the Met Police’s Specialist Crime Review Group to review the initial probe and then reinvestigate the crash, the police said in May.

Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up for PEOPLE’s free True Crime newsletter for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases.

The Independent Office for Police Conduct is continuing to look into the first investigation. The body is exploring complaints against 11 officers, with five of them being investigated for gross misconduct.

“While it is right that this matter be independently scrutinized, we are sorry for how we initially dealt with the incident and for the impact on those affected,” Cdr. Charmain Brenyah, who leads the Met’s Roads and Transport Policing Command, said, per the statement.

Brenyah added, “We will be fundamentally resetting how the Met investigates fatal and serious collisions.”