LONDON (AP) – A British judge on Monday rejected the United States’ request to extradite WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange to face espionage charges over the publication of US secret documents a decade ago, saying he would likely kill himself if it were kept under severe American prison conditions.
In a mixed decision for Assange and his supporters, district judge Vanessa Baraitser dismissed the defense’s arguments that the 49-year-old Australian faces a politically motivated American lawsuit that ignores freedom of expression protections. But she said Assange’s poor mental health was likely to deteriorate further under the conditions of “almost complete isolation” that he would face in a prison in the United States.
“I think Assange’s mental condition is such that it would be oppressive to extradite him to the United States of America,” said the judge.
US government lawyers said they would appeal the decision, and the U.S. Department of Justice said it would continue to seek Assange’s extradition.
“While we are extremely disappointed with the court’s final decision, we are grateful that the United States prevailed on all points of the law raised,” the agency said in a statement. “In particular, the court rejected all of Mr. Assange’s arguments regarding political motivation, political offense, fair trial and freedom of expression.”
Assange’s lawyers said they would ask for his release from a London prison where he has been held for more than 18 months at a bail hearing on Wednesday.
Assange, who sat quietly in the dock at London Central Criminal Court for the decision, wiped his forehead when the decision was announced. His partner Stella Moris, with whom he has two small children, wept.
Outside the courtroom, Moris said the decision was “the first step towards justice”, but it was not yet time to celebrate.
“I hoped today would be the day that Julian would come home,” she said. “Today is not that day, but that day will come soon.”
The decision marked a dramatic moment in Assange’s long legal battles in Britain – although it is probably not his final chapter.
It is not clear whether the new Biden government will proceed with the prosecution, initiated under President Donald Trump.
Assange’s American lawyer Barry Pollack said the legal team was “enormously gratified” by the British court’s decision.
“We hope that, after considering the UK court’s decision, the United States will decide not to pursue the case,” he said.
Moris asked Trump to forgive Assange before stepping down this month.
“Sir. President, tear down these prison walls,” she said. “Let our boys have their father.”
US prosecutors have indicted Assange on 17 counts of spying and one charge of computer misuse due to WikiLeaks’ publication of thousands of leaked military and diplomatic documents. The charges carry a maximum sentence of 175 years in prison.
Assange’s lawyers argue that he was acting as a journalist and is entitled to First Amendment protections on freedom of expression for publishing documents that exposed the US military irregularities in Iraq and Afghanistan.
United States government lawyers have denied that Assange was being sued just for publishing, saying the case “is largely based on his illegal involvement” in the theft of diplomatic cables and military files by the United States Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning.
The British judge supported the US lawyers on this point, saying that Assange’s actions, if proven, would amount to crimes “that would not be protected by his right to freedom of expression”. She also said that the US judicial system would give her a fair trial.
The defense also argued during a three-week fall hearing that Assange risked “a grossly disproportionate sentence” and detention in “draconian and inhumane conditions” if sent to the United States.
The judge agreed that prison conditions in the United States would be oppressive, saying there was a “real risk” that he would be sent to the Maximum Administrative Facility in Florence, Colorado. It is the highest security prison in the United States, it also holds Unabomber Theodore Kaczynski and Mexican drug dealer 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 adverse conditions, Assange’s mental health would deteriorate, causing him to commit suicide with the stubborn determination of his autism spectrum disorder,” said the judge.
She said Assange was “a depressed and sometimes desperate man” who had the “intellect and determination” to get around any suicide prevention measures taken by American prison officials.
Britain’s extradition agreement with the United States states that extradition can be blocked if “because of the person’s physical or mental condition, it is unfair or oppressive to extradite him”.
This is not the first time that the United Kingdom has refused extradition to the United States on this basis.
In 2018, a British court refused to extradite Lauri Love, a hacker accused of penetrating US government networks, due to the risk of killing himself. In 2012, then Interior Secretary Theresa May blocked the extradition of Gary McKinnon, who was accused of invading US military and space networks, due to the risk of ending his life.
Assange’s charge was condemned by journalists and human rights groups, who say it undermines freedom of expression and puts journalists in danger. They welcomed the judge’s decision, although it was not based on freedom of expression.
“It is a great relief for anyone who cares about the rights of journalists,” tweeted the Foundation for Freedom of the Press.
Assange’s legal problems started in 2010, when he was arrested in London at the request of Sweden, who wanted to question him about charges of rape and sexual assault by two women. In 2012, Assange jumped on bail and sought refuge inside the Embassy of Ecuador, where he was out of reach of British and Swedish authorities – but he was also effectively a prisoner, unable to leave the small diplomatic space in London’s Knightsbridge area.
The relationship between Assange and his hosts turned sour, and he was evicted from the embassy in April 2019. British police immediately arrested him for breach of bail in 2012.
Sweden abandoned sex crime investigations in November 2019 because too much time had passed, but Assange remained in Belmarsh’s maximum security prison in London during his extradition hearing.