LONDON – British judge on Monday rejects US request to extradite WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange to face espionage charges in connection with the publication of US secret documents a decade ago, saying he is likely to commit suicide if he is held in harsh American prison conditions.
In a joint ruling for Assange and his supporters, District Judge Vanessa Baraitser rejected the defense’s arguments that the 49-year-old Australian is facing a politically motivated US prosecution, which rides the protection of freedom of expression. But she said Assange’s poor mental health was likely to deteriorate under the “almost total isolation” he would face in a US prison.
“I think Mr. Assange’s mental condition is such that it would be stressful to extradite him to the United States,” the judge said.
US government lawyers have said they will appeal the decision, and the US Department of Justice has said it will continue to seek Assange’s extradition.
“Although we are extremely disappointed with the court’s final decision, we are pleased that the United States has prevailed over every point of law raised,” he said in a statement. “In particular, the court rejected all of Mr. Assange’s arguments political motivation. , political crime, fair trial and freedom of expression. “
Assange’s lawyers have said they will demand his release from a London jail, where he has been held for more than 18 months, at a bail hearing on Wednesday.
Assange, who was sitting quietly in the dock at London’s Central Criminal Court for the decision, wiped his forehead as the decision was announced. His partner Stella Moris, with whom he has two young sons, cried.
Outside the court, Moris said the ruling was “the first step to justice,” but it was not yet time to celebrate.
“I had hoped that today would be the day Julian would come home,” she said. “Today is not that day, but that day will come soon.”
The ruling marked a dramatic moment in the months of Assange’s legal battle in Britain – though probably not the final chapter.
It is unclear whether the new Biden administration will continue the criminal investigation initiated by President Donald Trump.
Assange’s American lawyer, Barry Pollack, said that the legal team was “enormously satisfied” with the British court’s decision.
“We hope that after reviewing the British court’s ruling, the United States will decide not to pursue the case further,” he said.
Moris urged Trump to pardon Assange before leaving office this month.
“Sir. President, tear down the prison walls,” she said. “Let our boys have their father.”
U.S. prosecutors have charged Assange with 17 counts of espionage and one count of misuse of a computer in connection with the publication by WikiLeaks of thousands of military and diplomatic documents. The charges carry a maximum sentence of 175 years in prison.
Lawyers for Assange claim that he acted as a journalist and has the right to protection of freedom of expression for the first amendment to the publication of documents exposing US military actions in Iraq and Afghanistan.
US government lawyers have denied that Assange was prosecuted for publication only, saying it was “largely based on his illegal involvement” in the theft of diplomatic cables and military files by US military intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning.
The British judge joined the American lawyers on this score, stating that Assange’s actions, if proven, would mean crimes “that would not be protected by his right to freedom of expression”. She also said the US judiciary would provide a fair trial.
The defense also claimed during a three-week hearing in the fall that Assange faces “extremely disproportionate punishment” and detention in “draconian and inhumane conditions” if sent to the United States.
The judge agreed that US prison conditions would be oppressive, saying there was a “real risk” of being sent to the Maximum Administrative Facility in Florence, Colorado. It is the highest security prison in the United States, also owned by Unabomber Theodore Kaczynski and Mexican drug lord Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman.
She accepted evidence from expert witnesses that Assange had a depressive disorder and an autism spectrum disorder.
“I am pleased that under these harsh conditions, Mr Assange’s mental health would deteriorate, leading him to commit suicide with the sole determination of his autism spectrum disorder,” the judge said.
She said Assange was “a depressed and sometimes desperate man” who had the “intellect and determination” to circumvent any suicide prevention measures taken by US prison authorities.
The UK’s extradition agreement with the US says that extradition can be blocked if “due to the person’s mental or physical condition, it would be unfair or oppressive to extradite him”.
This is not the first time the United Kingdom has refused extradition to the United States for these reasons.
In 2018, a British court refused to extradite Lauri Love, a hacker accused of breaking into US government networks, due to the risk of suicide. In 2012, then-Secretary of the Interior Theresa May blocked the extradition of Gary McKinnon, who was accused of breaking into US military and space networks because of the risk of ending his life.
Assange’s prosecution has been condemned by journalists and human rights groups, who say it undermines freedom of expression and endangers journalists. They welcomed the judge’s decision, even though it was not taken for reasons of free speech.
“This is a huge relief for anyone who cares about the rights of journalists,” the Press Freedom Foundation wrote on Twitter.
Assange’s legal troubles began in 2010, when he was arrested in London at the request of Sweden, who wanted to question him on allegations of rape and sexual assault by two women. In 2012, Assange jumped into bail and sought refuge inside the Ecuadorian embassy, where he was beyond the reach of British and Swedish authorities – but was also a prisoner, unable to leave the small diplomatic space in London’s Knightsbridge area of London.
The relationship between Assange and his hosts eventually worsened and he was evacuated from the embassy in April 2019. British police immediately arrested him on bail in 2012.
Sweden dropped its sex crime investigation in November 2019 because so much time had passed, but Assange remained in the Belmarsh High Security Prison in London throughout his extradition hearing.