The imprisoned publisher must first ask the High Court that his appeal to the Supreme Court be approved as a point of law of general public importance.
Entrance to U.K. Supreme Court. (Wikimedia Commons)
By Joe Lauria
Special to Consortium News
Julian Assange’s lawyers on Thursday filed an application to appeal to the U.K. Supreme Court to overturn the decision by two High Court judges to allow his extradition to the United States.
The appeal can only go forward if those High Court judges agree that “there is a point of law of general public importance involved in the decision,” according to the 2003 Extradition Act.
Stella Moris, an Assange lawyer and his fiancee, said on Thursday that “the High Court’s ruling in USA v Assange raises three points of law of general public importance that have an impact on the procedural and human rights safeguards of a wide range of other types of cases.” She did not elaborate.
The High Court on Dec. 10 agreed with the lower court decision that Assange was too ill to be sent to the most severe isolation in a U.S. prison, so-called Special Administrative Measures (SAMS). It did not find that Assange was a malingerer as the U.S. alleged in the extradition hearing in September 2020 and did not argue that U.S. prisons were not extremely harsh.
Instead the High Court overturned the lower court’s decision not to extradite solely on the strength of U.S. diplomatic assurances given to Britain — after the U.S. lost in the lower court — that it would not put Assange under SAMS or send him to the maximum security prison ADX Florence in Colorado. The assurances also say Assange will receive clinical and psychological treatment if requested by a prison doctor.
The assurances contain an error, perhaps by design, saying that “pre-trial” Assange would not be held at ADX, which is only a post-conviction facility.
So at this point it is up to the High Court judges Lord Chief Justice Ian Duncan Burnett and Lord Justice Timothy Holroyde to find that their own judgment raised a point of “law of general public importance” for Assange’s application to appeal to the Supreme Court to go ahead. Moris said that the judges’ decision would not come before the third week of January.
If the High Court refuses, Assange can then apply directly to the Supreme Court.
Joe Lauria is editor-in-chief of Consortium News and a former U.N. correspondent for The Wall Street Journal, Boston Globe, and numerous other newspapers. He was an investigative reporter for the Sunday Times of London and began his professional work as a 19-year old stringer for The New York Times. He can be reached at joelauria@consortiumnews.com and followed on Twitter @unjoe
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Why is he not out on bail? Even the cruel “legal” system cannot pretend poor Julian is a menace to society and likely to abscond.
He should feel very fortunate that the elites have not arkancided him yet. This seems to be the usual procedure to deal with anyone that exposes the elite corruption.
Manunkind
It disturbed me to read “Stella Moris, an Assange lawyer and his fiancee…” I wish it had said Stella Moris…and his wife Stella.” They have been a couple for many years, they have two children together, but have been denied the human right, the natural right, to marry, which I consider an offense against them, against God and against Society in general. Is it not enough to be vindictive against this man, whose only “crime” consisted in telling the truth, to torture him slowly to death? Must they also punish this woman, the only woman officially denied the right to form a family, and two innocent children, whom this lawless empire has condemned to remain officially “illegitimate?”
I agree with you entirely! Its just another form of humiliation for Stella to endure, as our sad
media, pretends never to have heard of Julian!
Sadly, they used his evidence against the US…which he is in prison for…to make a lot of money from their book
and they have never, given him any support!
They really are, the lowest of the low…if only Rusbridger was still Editor!!
Oh Joe, I hope you will utter the correct words 2 seal a fate of this faulty over reach to the dust bin of imperial over reach. How is exposing crimes committed by a strong state committed as a war totally constructed of lies… anything but a political crime yeah
Oh Joe, I hope you will utter the correct words 2 seal a fate of this faulty over reach to the dust bin of imperial over reach. How is exposing crimes committed by a strong state committed as a war totally constructed of lies… anything but a political crime. Assange was not out to make any material or selfish gain, but to expose the callous regard for life and a murderous execution of victims by the illegal invaders. Where is the criminal intent? British extradition law does not allow those who committed “political crimes” to be extradited to the criminal regimes that committed the crimes. Especially since it has been exposed, that the regime had planned to murder this truth teller. What could be a more cleat case of illegal wrong?
The people themselves will effect this verdict. If enough care that is. We all know who needs to hear from us and I have already contacted Biden and signed all the petitions and I always speak to people to speak their minds out on this one, and more so the UK folks. Prayers. Jesus knows whats needed. Happy Christmas everyone.