Supporters of WikiLeaks founder ready for long battle after he is jailed for bail breach

This article is more than 4 months old

This article is more than 4 months old

A struggle over the US request for Julian Assange’s extradition will open in court on Thursday morning, a day after the WikiLeaks founder was jailed for just under a year for breaching bail conditions to avoid being extradited to Sweden.

Wednesday’s sentence was decried as an “outrage” by Kristinn Hrafnsson, the editor-in-chief of the whistleblowing website, who said the hearing at Westminster magistrates court to oppose Assange’s extradition would be the start of the “big fight” – a process he said would be “a question of life and death for Mr Assange”.

A judge largely rejected the mitigating factors put forward by lawyers for Assange – who took refuge in Ecuador’s embassy to London in 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden over sexual assault allegations, which he has denied – and told the 47-year-old it was difficult to envisage a more serious example of the offence.

“You remained there for nearly seven years, exploiting your privileged position to flout the law and advertise internationally your disdain for the law of this country,” said Judge Deborah Taylor, as she sentenced him at Southwark crown court.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest WikiLeaks’ editor-in-chief Kristinn Hrafnsson (centre left) and barrister Jennifer Robinson (centre right) outside Southwark crown court. Photograph: Tolga Akmen/AFP/Getty Images

“Your actions undoubtedly affected the progress of the Swedish proceedings. Even though you did cooperate initially, it was not for you to decide the nature or extent of your cooperation with the investigations. They could not be effectively progressed, and were discontinued, not least because you remained in the embassy.”

Assange, who was arrested last month when Ecuador revoked his political asylum and invited Metropolitan police officers inside the country’s Knightsbridge diplomatic premises, had written a letter in which he expressed regret for his actions but claimed he had been left with no choice.

“I apologise unreservedly to those who consider that I have disrespected them by the way I have pursued my case. This is not what I wanted or intended,” he said in the letter read out by his lawyer, Mark Summers QC.

“I found myself struggling with terrifying circumstances for which neither I nor those from whom I sought advice could work out any remedy. I did what I thought at the time was the best and perhaps the only thing that could be done – which I hoped might lead to a legal resolution being reached between Ecuador and Sweden that would protect me from the worst of my fears.”

Assange, wearing a black blazer and shorn of the beard worn when police carried him out of the embassy last month, was told by the judge that his continued residence there had cost £16m of taxpayers’ money “in ensuring that when you did leave, you were brought to justice”.

“It is essential to the rule of law that nobody is above or beyond the reach of the law,” said the judge, who said Assange’s written apology was the first recognition that he regretted his actions.

The judge was met with cries of “shame on you” from Assange’s supporters in the gallery when she sentenced him to 50 weeks in prison – two weeks short of the maximum under guidelines – and directed that time spent on remand since his arrest on 11 April would count against it. Assange turned and raised a clenched fist to supporters as he was led away.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Assange after his arrest in April. Photograph: Henry Nicholls/Reuters

The WikiLeaks’ founder’s lawyer had earlier laid out a number of mitigating factors, claiming Assange lived in fear of being rendered from Sweden to the US, where politicians had talked of having him assassinated.

The case of Chelsea Manning and the conditions in which the US military whistleblower was kept was also mentioned, as was the case of individuals who were rendered from Sweden to the US in chains and after being drugged for transatlantic flights.

The seven-year itch: Assange's awkward stay in the embassy Read more

Summers told the court the Australian had been “gripped” by fears that his work with WikiLeaks would provoke rendition to Guantanamo Bay or the US, where he could face the death penalty.

“As threats rained down on him from America, they overshadowed everything as far as he was concerned,” he said. “They dominated his thoughts. They were not invented by him, they were gripping him throughout.”

He said the fact Assange chose indefinite detention in small rooms at the Ecuadorian embassy, in a state of depression and pain for various medical ailments, rather than spend 12 months in a British jail, showed the extent of his fears.

Speaking on the steps of the court afterwards, Hrafnsson said the sentence was vindictive, adding: ““It doesn’t give us a lot of faith in the UK justice system for the fight ahead.”

Drawing a comparison with the sentence of Jack Shepherd, who killed a woman in a speedboat crash and later fled to Georgia, he added: “And may I point out, just in comparison, that the so-called speedboat killer got six months for not showing up in court to hear his sentencing for manslaughter.”

Shepherd was given credit for his guilty plea, while Assange denied the bail offence and was convicted by a court.</s>British Judge Sentences Julian Assange To 50 Weeks In Prison

Enlarge this image toggle caption Jack Taylor/Getty Images Jack Taylor/Getty Images

Julian Assange has been sentenced to 50 weeks in prison by a British judge.

The controversial founder of WikiLeaks was arrested in April after being pushed out of the Ecuadorian Embassy in London, where he had been living since 2012, avoiding an international arrest warrant. That same day, he was convicted of jumping bail.

Judge Deborah Taylor said Assange's time in the embassy had cost British taxpayers the equivalent of nearly $21 million, and that he had sought asylum in a "deliberate attempt to delay justice."

Assange offered a written apology in court, claiming that his actions were a response to terrifying circumstances. He said he had been effectively imprisoned in the embassy; two doctors also provided medical evidence of the mental and physical effects of being confined.

The judge was not swayed by the arguments. "You were not living under prison conditions, and you could have left at any time to face due process with the rights and protections which the legal system in this country provides," she said.

Assange's prison sentence fell two weeks short of the 12-month maximum.

Supporters of the 47-year-old, who see him as a light shining truth on government abuses of power, shouted "Free Julian Assange" as the van that transported him left Southwark Crown Court.

Protesters congregated nearby, criticizing the mainstream media and reportedly repeating the words "Shame on you" to the judge.

Assange had been wanted for questioning about allegations of rape and sexual misconduct, and he had faced extradition to Sweden, but Ecuador granted him asylum. He has maintained that he is innocent.

Assange is scheduled for another court hearing Thursday, as he faces the possibility of extradition to the United States. The U.S. Justice Department has accused him of helping former intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning in cracking a password stored on Department of Defense computers. Authorities said the trove of classified documents that WikiLeaks eventually published threatened U.S. national security.

Manning was convicted and served more than six years in prison. Her 35-year sentence was commuted by then-President Barack Obama.

Federal investigators have also said that Assange and WikiLeaks played an integral role in the Russian attack on the 2016 presidential election. Prosecutors contend that Russia's military intelligence agency, the GRU, gave Assange emails it had pilfered during that time.

Swedish authorities dropped one case against him because it expired, but Assange may still face prosecution efforts in Sweden. After his arrest, more than 70 members of British Parliament signed a letter to support his extradition to Sweden if authorities there request it.

WikiLeaks called Assange's sentence on Wednesday "as shocking as it is vindictive." The organization said it has "grave concerns as to whether he will receive a fair extradition hearing in the UK."

WikiLeaks' Icelandic editor, Kristinn Hrafnsson, told reporters that Thursday's hearing would be the "big fight," a battle over Assange's extradition to the United States.

"What is at stake there could be a question of life and death for Mr. Assange," he said. "It is also a question of life and death for a major journalistic principle."</s>A British court sentenced WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange to 50 weeks in prison Wednesday for jumping bail in 2012.

The court sentenced 47-year-old Assange to 50 weeks in prison for jumping bail and fleeing to the Ecuadoran Embassy in London after Sweden requested his extradition following sexual assault allegations, according to The Washington Post.

This made him guilty of breaching the Bail Act, according to BBC.

Assange’s lawyer Mark Summers argued at the trial that Assange violated bail out of reasonable fear for his safety.

Summers told London’s Southwark Crown Court that Assange was “living under overwhelming fear of rendition.”

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He believed that if he were extradited to Sweden, he would be extradited to the United States and possibly to Guantanamo Bay, according to the Washington Post.

Summers also read a letter that Assange wrote to the court in which Assange said that he apologized “unreservedly.”

“I found myself struggling with terrifying circumstances,” Assange wrote in the letter, according to The Post. “I did what I thought at the time was the best and only solution.”

A judge at the trial said that Assange could have surrendered himself but chose to use his “privileged position” to evade the law.

That caused British police to spend almost $21 million in securing the Ecuadoran Embassy, The Washington Post reported.

“He was a desperate man,” Summers said to the court, describing Assange’s seven-year imprisonment in the embassy.

“As threats rained down on him from America, they overshadowed everything,” he said, according to BBC.

Two dozen Assange reporters were gathered in the courtroom, and some of them shouted “Shame!” as Assange was being led away.

Assange reportedly raised his fist in soldiarity with these supporters, according to the Washington Post.

RELATED: WikiLeaks Kingpin Assange To Be Surrendered to British Authorities

A version of this article appeared on The Daily Caller News Foundation website.

We are committed to truth and accuracy in all of our journalism. Read our editorial standards.</s>WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has confirmed that he will fight extradition to the United States, where he is accused of conspiring to hack a government computer.

At a court hearing Thursday, Assange said he would not surrender to extradition for doing what he called “journalism that has won many awards.” Assange appeared at Westminster Magistrates’ Court by video link from London’s Belmarsh Prison, where he is serving a 50-week sentence for skipping bail in 2012 and taking refuge in the embassy of Ecuador. British police arrested him last month after Ecuador revoked his political asylum. WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange was facing a court hearing Thursday over a US request to extradite him for allegedly conspiring to hack a Pentagon computer.

Assange, who is fighting attempts to send him to the United States, is expected to appear by video link from prison for the hearing at London’s Westminster Magistrates’ Court. A few dozen supporters holding signs reading “Free Assange” and “No extradition” gathered outside the courthouse before the hearing. It’s an early stage in what is likely to be months- or years-long extradition process.

The 47-year-old Australian was sentenced Wednesday to 50 weeks in prison for jumping bail in 2012 and holing up in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London. At the time, he was facing extradition to Sweden for questioning over rape and sexual assault allegations made by two women.</s>WikiLeaks' Julian Assange sentenced to 50 weeks in prison for jumping UK bail in 2012

LONDON (AP) — WikiLeaks' Julian Assange sentenced to 50 weeks in prison for jumping UK bail in 2012.</s>LONDON (AP) — A British judge has sentenced WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange to 50 weeks in prison for jumping bail in 2012.

Judge Deborah Taylor said Wednesday that Assange merited near the maximum sentence of one year because of the seriousness of his offense.

She rejected his claim for leniency based on the nearly seven years he spent in the Ecuadorian Embassy.

The white-haired Assange stood impassively with his hands clasped while the sentence was read. His supporters in the public gallery chanted “Shame on you” at the judge as Assange was led away.

Assange sought asylum in the South American country’s London embassy in June 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden, where he was wanted for questioning over rape and sexual assault allegations.

Earlier, his lawyers argued that he had jumped bail because he was a “desperate man” fearing extradition to the United States.

Please check back on WSVN.com and 7News for more details on this developing story.

Copyright 2019 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.</s>A British judge has sentenced WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange to 50 weeks in prison for jumping bail in 2012.

Judge Deborah Taylor said Wednesday that Assange merited near the maximum sentence of one year because of the seriousness of his offense.

She rejected his claim for leniency based on the nearly seven years he spent in the Ecuadorian Embassy.

The white-haired Assange stood impassively with his hands clasped while the sentence was read. His supporters in the public gallery chanted "Shame on you" at the judge as Assange was led away.

Assange sought asylum in the South American country's London embassy in June 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden, where he was wanted for questioning over rape and sexual assault allegations.

Earlier, his lawyers argued that he had jumped bail because he was a "desperate man" fearing extradition to the United States.

A judge at an earlier hearing said the 47-year-old hacker's offense "merits the maximum sentence."

Assange raised a fist defiantly as he arrived in a prison van at court from the London prison where he has been held since his arrest last month.

The Australian secret-spiller sought asylum in the South American country's London embassy in June 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden, where he was wanted for questioning over rape and sexual assault allegations.

Assange was arrested April 11 after Ecuador revoked his political asylum, accusing him of everything from meddling in the nation's foreign affairs to poor hygiene.

He faces a separate court hearing Thursday on a U.S. extradition request. American authorities have charged Assange with conspiring to break into a Pentagon computer system.</s>WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is seen as he leaves a police station in London, Britain.

LONDON - WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange was sentenced to 50 weeks in jail by a London court on Wednesday (May 1) for skipping bail to enter the Ecuadorean embassy where he was holed up for almost seven years until police dragged him out last month.

Judge Deborah Taylor read out the sentence as Assange, in a black jacket and grey sweatshirt, looked on.

Judge Taylor said Assange had exploited his privileged position to flout the law and express his disdain for British justice.

He was convicted last month of skipping bail in June 2012 after an extradition order to Sweden over an allegation of rape. The maximum sentence was a year in jail.

"You remained there for nearly seven years, exploiting your privileged position to flout the law and advertise internationally your disdain for the law of this country," Judge Taylor said at Southwark Crown Court.

She said that it had cost taxpayers £16 million (S$28.4 million) to ensure that Assange was arrested when he left the embassy.

Assange supporters chanted "shame on you" as the judge read out the verdict.

Assange was accused by two Swedish women of sexual assault and rape in 2010. Assange, who denied the allegations, fought through the courts to get an extradition order and the preliminary investigation dropped.

Just hours after Assange was removed from the Ecuadorean embassy in London on April 11, US prosecutors said they had charged Assange with conspiracy in trying to access a classified US government computer.

At the hearing in London, Assange apologised for any disrespect he may have shown.

"I apologise unreservedly to those who consider that I have disrespected them by the way I have pursued my case. This is not what I wanted or intended," Assange said in a letter read out by his lawyer, Mr Mark Summers.

"I found myself struggling with terrifying circumstances for which neither I nor those from whom I sought advice could work out any remedy. I did what I thought at the time was the best," Assange said.

Mr Summers told the court that Assange had "strongly held fears" in 2012 that he would be sent from Sweden to the United States and ultimately to the Guantanamo Bay detention centre in Cuba.

Mr Summers cited the arrest and treatment of Chelsea Manning, a US Army soldier who served seven years in military prison for leaking classified data while she was working as an intelligence analyst in Iraq.

Assange's lawyer said Manning, who is transgender, had been subjected to sleep deprivation and forced to parade naked in front of military personnel.

WikiLeaks angered Washington by publishing hundreds of thousands of secret US diplomatic cables that laid bare often highly critical US appraisals of world leaders, from Russian President Vladimir Putin to members of the Saudi royal family.

Assange made international headlines in early 2010 when WikiLeaks published a classified US military video showing a 2007 attack by Apache helicopters in Baghdad that killed a dozen people, including two Reuters news staff.

To some, Assange is a hero for exposing what supporters cast as abuse of power by modern states and for championing free speech. But to others, he is a dangerous rebel who has undermined US security.

The 47-year-old is facing a US extradition request. An initial hearing in the case is set for this Thursday (May 2).</s>Julian Assange has been sentenced to 50 weeks jail. He was arrested in London after being forcefully removed from the Ecuadorian embassy. The wikileaks founders now fears extradition to the United States to face charges of conspiracy.

Julian Assange has been jailed for 50 weeks for breaching his bail by gaining asylum in the Ecuadorean embassy in London for seven years as he sought to evade sex charges in Sweden.

He raised his fist defiantly as he was led from Southwark Crown Court in London, while supporters erupted with anger from the public gallery and yelled “Shame on you!” to the court.

The WikiLeaks founder apologised to the court through an extraordinary letter, in which he spoke of being terrified of being taken to the US and persecuted for published sensitive intelligence cables.

The 47-year-old was found guilty of breaching the Bail Act at a hearing at Westminster Magistrates’ Court earlier this month after his sensational arrest by Met Police detectives.

Prosecutor Aaron Watkins told Judge Deborah Taylor this was “plainly a category A1 case” — the most severe the charge could be — while Assange’s defence lawyer argued it was a much lesser breach due to the fear he had of being sent to the US.

A letter from Assange was read to the court in which the Australian said he was sorry for the trouble his action had caused, but claimed he did it because he was “struggling with terrifying circumstances and he “did what I thought was best”.

Medical records tendered to court showed his seven years in asylum has left him “sad, degraded and insecure” with moderate to severe depression.

Assange lawyer Mark Summers said the background to the charge was the WikiLeaks founder seeking asylum, which was a lawful act, and asked the judge to take into account the “extraordinary and difficult” situation — which was the fear of “removal from Sweden to American and even Guantanamo Bay”.

Mr Summers cited the arrest and treatment of Chelsea Manning — a US soldier arrested over the leaks of the sensitive cables — who he said was subjected to sleep deprivation and paraded naked in front of military officers. That fear was playing on Assange’s mind when he made the decision to skip bail, said the lawyer. “As far as Mr Assange was concerned, he was acutely aware US authorities were interested in him, if I could put it as diplomatically as I can.”

There was also a suggestion he could be forcibly “kidnapped” without the consent of the country he was in and taken to the US, Mr Summers told the court.

Assange was living in fear after the publication of sensitive WikiLeaks cables and “as the threats rained down on him”, they dominated his thoughts at the time he committed the breach of bail, the lawyer added.

The Queensland-born computer programmer feared if he went to Sweden, authorities there would quickly deliver him to the US, said Mr Summers.

The lawyer argued Assange should be sentenced on the basis he had a genuine fear of extradition.

In June 2012, he believed his extradition from Sweden to the US was “inevitable” so he “took the decision to seek refuge and seek asylum” at the Ecuadorean Embassy “to avoid persecution, solitary confinement and death penalty,” added Mr Summers.

“He believed he was exercising his legal rights,” said the lawyer. “He was faced with an impossible choice and he reacted accordingly.”

Assange was dragged from the embassy on April 11 after trying to barricade himself in his room at the embassy, where he told police: “This is unlawful.”

He also yelled, “the UK must resist!” as he was led out — a reference to the extradition plans of the US Government.

At the initial hearing, the judge branded him a “narcissist who couldn’t get beyond his own selfish interests” and deserved to be punished by the maximum sentence of 12 months.

Swedish prosecutors have said they are considering reopening their investigation into sexual assault allegations against him.

Asssange faces charges in the US, with the US Attorney’s Office issuing one count of conspiring with former army intelligence analyst Manning in the hacking of intelligence computers to expose intelligence operations in the United States.

There were concerns he could face the death penalty in the US if he were extradited and found guilty.

The extradition hearing will be held via video link at London’s Westminster Crown Court tomorrow.

The public gallery was packed full of supporters, and many more couldn’t get seats in court. Outside, hordes of supporters repeatedly called out “free Assange!”

The WikiLeaks founder has been incarcerated in Belmarsh prison in southeast London since his arrest.

The US accuses Assange of trying to help Manning hack a password on a Pentagon computer system before the release of 750,000 classified military and diplomatic documents on WikiLeaks. But the Justice Department has already failed to force Manning to testify before a grand jury about Assange, jailing her for contempt by refusing.

US authorities allege hacking the Pentagon password assisted in concealing Manning’s identity as Assange’s source for the military secrets abut the Iraq war.

“Cracking the password would have allowed Manning to log on to the computers under a username that did not belong to her,” reads the indictment against Assange. “Such a deceptive measure would have made it more difficult for investigators to determine the source of the illegal disclosures.”

The US application for Assange’s extradition has sparked controversy and protest by Assange supporters. Assange’s disappearance into the Ecuadorean embassy seven years ago came after a 2010 allegation of rape lodged by Swedish authorities.

Allegations by two Swedish women of sexual misconduct against them by Assange were dropped in 2015 after the statute of limitations expired.

But Sweden may lodge a new request as women’s groups pile pressure on British Home Secretary Sajid Javid to prioritise a Swedish application.</s>LONDON -- A British judge has sentenced WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange to 50 weeks in prison for jumping bail in 2012.

Judge Deborah Taylor said Wednesday that Assange merited near the maximum sentence of one year because of the seriousness of his offense.

She rejected his claim for leniency based on the nearly seven years he spent in the Ecuadorian Embassy.

The white-haired Assange stood impassively with his hands clasped while the sentence was read. His supporters in the public gallery chanted "Shame on you" at the judge as Assange was led away.

Assange sought asylum in the South American country's London embassy in June 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden, where he was wanted for questioning over rape and sexual assault allegations.

Earlier, his lawyers argued that he had jumped bail because he was a "desperate man" fearing extradition to the United States.
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is sentenced to 50 weeks in prison by a judge in the United Kingdom for breaching bail in 2012. Assange still faces possible extradition to the United States on charges of conspiracy to commit computer intrusion.