Lauri Love, the British student accused of hacking into US government websites, will not be extradited to face trial in America, the high court has ruled.
Lawyers for the 32-year-old, who lives in Suffolk, had argued that he should be tried for his alleged crimes in the UK and that he would be at risk of killing himself if sent to the US.
The court accepted both of the main arguments advanced by Love’s lawyers that there was no reason he could not be tried in England and that he might suffer serious damage to his health if he were extradited.
There was an outburst of cheering and applause in court when the lord chief justice, Lord Burnett of Maldon, announced his decision. Burnett asked supporters to be quiet, saying: “This is a court, not a theatre.”
Announcing his decision preventing extradition, Burnett said: “We emphasise however that it would not be oppressive to prosecute Mr Love in England for the offences alleged against him.
“Far from it. Much of Mr Love’s argument was based on the contention that this is indeed where he should be prosecuted.
“The CPS [Crown Prosecution Service] must now bend its endeavours to his prosecution, with the assistance to be expected from the authorities in the United States, recognising the gravity of the allegations in this case, and the harm done to the victims. As we have pointed out, the CPS did not intervene to say that prosecution in England was inappropriate. If proven, these are serious offences indeed.”
The CPS, which acts on behalf of the US authorities in the case, said it would read the judgment before deciding whether or not to appeal.
Any appeal against the high court decision would be taken to the supreme court.
Emerging from the front of the court afterwards, Love said: “This is not just for myself. I hope this sets a precedent for the future for anyone in the same position that they will be tried here.
For more read the full of article at The Guardian
