Judege Baraitser Denies Julian Assange Bail
What a hypocritical sociopath she is! Pretending that she gave a fig about the likelihood that he’d commit suicide in the Supermax Florence, CO prison...but will allow him to do the same in Supermax Belmarsh prison, or indeed die of Covi9-19 or his many other physical maladies.
#FuckHer. And fuck her mentor Lady Arbuthnot whose husband Tory Lord Arbuthnot was mentioned in some WikiLeaks publications!
Excerpts from Kevin Gosztola’s coverage:
“A British district judge denied bail for WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange after a hearing in which the prosecution argued he had helped NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden “flee justice” and would abscond if released from the Belmarsh high-security prison.
“As far as Mr. Assange is concerned, this case has not been won,” Judge Vanessa Baraitser declared. She said the United States government “must be allowed to challenge [her] decision.”
She went on to highlight the “huge support networks” he still has “should he again choose to go to ground,” and Baraitser agreed with the prosecution that WikiLeaks’ assistance of Snowden made Assange a flight risk.Fitzgerald questioned whether the Justice Department is even serious about an appeal, given recent reporting on the incoming administration of President-elect Joe Biden.
In her ruling on bail, despite evidence of a recent outbreak at Belmarsh, the judge maintained that the facility was properly caring for prisoners and Assange would be safe.
Although Fitzgerald indicated Assange would be willing to wear a GPS tracking device while under house arrest, the judge gave no reasoning why this would not be enough to prevent him from absconding before the date of his appeal.”
He has a 45-minute video of the proceedings on the page.
On my way to court. I hope that by the time I leave, Julian will be by my side. #FreeAssangeNOW#DropTheCharges#PardonAssange#Assangecase pic.twitter.com/iyBc012pL7
— Stella Moris #pardonAssange (@StellaMoris1) January 6, 2021
So had millions of us around the world, Stella. Inconsolable. Maybe the Biden administration will drop vacate the charges?
Comments
The judge is following the script.
The ruling on extradition was a big surprise to almost everyone. There is a play planned by the UK government or they’re just delaying until they achieve something. I really have no idea what but consistent logic and the rule of law ain’t it.
"Ah, but I was so much older then, I'm younger than that now..."
it was a surprise, but a cya move,
perhaps even with the 'help' of the US prosecutors, given that baraitser agreed almost totally with the framing of the prosecution's conclusions. i'd tried to discover on what grounds would they base their appeal, dinnae get far, save from maybe jen robinson on DN! and an op-ed on consortium news.
his mama's Inconsolable agony.
Damn
Chris Hedges called it. This is long, but worth a read. This has been LONG in the planning since Wikileaks release the Iraq War Logs. Since most won't click here is the highlight of that plan....
https://www.commondreams.org/views/2021/01/05/empire-not-done-julian-ass...
Scientists are concerned that conspiracy theories may die out if they keep coming true at the current alarming rate.
Michael Ratner was a god among men.
CCR was one NGO we used to support long ago...when we were able to.
thank you for the Cliff's notes. i' been asking yesterday on what possible grounds could the prosecution appeal?
jen robinson said that the court has to give permission to file an appeal, then it could be pushed down the road...until next year.
from stefania maurizi, and related to Ratner's prescience:
the link: ‘Will Assange be able to appeal to the European Court of human Rights to fight his extradition to the Us?’, FOIA documents reveal how back in 2011 the Swedish authorities had confidential contact with the U.K. authorities to discuss how to extradite Julian Assange to Sweden before he could request protective measures from the European Court of Human Rights. Will the United States use similar tactics to extradite him?, stefania maurizi, jan.6, 2021
thanks for your diligence and those who helped your FOIA requests, stefania.
If 'justice' still exists in this world
The spooks in UK and US aren't necessarily supporting it.
Most of the vassal states kinda like this quasi-justice as it
suits their power games. WHO, ICC, UN, UNOOSA, OCC, IFSCA, etc. seem
to bend to the will of the empires depending on the wind.
question everything
How much longer can we the people be abused?
So instead of committing suicide in ameriKKKa he will be
allowed to commit suicide in Belamrsh. It was never about
extradition then was it, they just want Julian to die. How
much more evil can 2 countries get?
The water is about to boil
Me thinks come April when most ameriKKKans will be hungry
homeless and hopeless that the real protests will begin.
IOW's it will be the bottom of the 9th and it won't be
pretty
I never knew that the term "Never Again" only pertained to
those born Jewish
"Antisemite used to be someone who didn't like Jews
now it's someone who Jews don't like"
Heard from Margaret Kimberley
while civil insurrection may be coming
soon to amerikka, i'd imagine that assange's rulings by baraitser will be in the foreground, even though the sole 'suicide' 'No to Extradition' means that other publishers of leaked and/or hacked documents will be protected.
now i wish more people in this @Shithole Nation were aware of what was in the Covid stim omnibus package, my self; as i'd hoped that given We got $600, and they got...zillions would matter. or is it: keep them week, hungry, and distracted...always the plan?
I've always said
that they would eventually succeed in killing him one way or another- that he was essentially a dead man the moment he walked into that embassy. I think that they've let him live this long simply as a cat toy, as a flare-lit warning to anyone else that they can AND WILL fuck with you forever for any reason (or no reason).
I always figured that they'd get him, put him into a C130, handcuff him to a Jeep on the cargo ramp, and roll it out the tailgate somewhere over the North Atlantic. I do have to admit that this has gone on a lot longer than I expected- they must really, really, really want to make sure that anyone who knows where any of the many skeletons are stored stays quiet. That message has been well and truly sent.
It certainly is helpful that he isn't a US Citizen, innit? That makes this a lot easier for them. So much for the rule of law- it is just a quaint memory, now, and was probably just an illusion all along. It certainly has been since WW2.
Twice bitten, permanently shy.
you may be right about:
'as soon is he walked into that embassy', but i'd say under rafael correa he may have been relatively safe. but under his hand-picked VP lenin moreno, utter horrors came, including the spying by UC global, if i recall the timeline correctly.
i've seen a few translated tweets from correa in exile (isn't he?)...not pretty.
but sure, pompeo especially wants him dead (head on a pike?) for publishing Vault 7 as assange had thunk, although all espionage charges stem from 2010-2011, i believe jen robinson had said.
I used to enjoy the fairy tale
That the Wikileaks organization had some damning evidence which was being saved
for the time Julian was snuffed in a type of dead man's switch trigger. If so, just do it.
No sense in waiting for the undertaker.
question everything
the perhaps mythical
Dead Man's Switch? i remember there'd been a hella lotta code coming from Wikileaks on twitter a few years ago, but apparently it was a false alarm. kristim may know.
I wouldn't hold out hope for Biden doing the right thing.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nF8WRFw5sHQ
"Without the right to offend, freedom of speech does not exist." Taslima Nasrin
agreed; it's long been his
byword on assange. on my last diary i'd included that the Buzz had it that barack obomba who'd failed to bring espionage charges because: the NYT factor, would be biden's choice for AJ.
mr. wd said today that the buzz is: merrick garland.
more #biden/harris transition team buzz from msn.com:
Twitter Executive Joins Biden’s Transition Team
on later edit:
Here's Obama & Biden scheming against Assange in 2012
"Last December, Fairfax newspapers used FOI laws to obtain cables that showed Canberra was fully aware, in December 2010, that WikiLeaks was the target of an “unprecedented” investigation to determine whether Assange could be charged under US law.
Concerned by this politically damaging disclosure, Washington stepped in. According to Age and Sydney Morning Herald correspondent Philip Dorling, Australian government sources said senior US officials subsequently asked to be “more closely consulted” on future FOI releases.
(all emphasis mine)
At the end of February, also acting in concert with the White House, the Gillard government secured the passage of legislation that would cut off any attempt by Assange to avoid extradition to the US by returning to Australia if he wins the UK appeal.
With virtually no coverage in the media, the Extradition and Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters Legislation Amendment Act 2012 was rubberstamped in the Senate on February 28. The most critical provision allows the government to override restrictions on extraditing people accused of “political offences” against foreign governments.
Previously, extradition had to be refused if the alleged crime was political in nature. Now “terrorist”-related offences will no longer be exempt from extradition. This provision could well be used against Assange. US Vice President Joseph Biden has described Assange as a “high tech terrorist,” a charge repeated by others.
The amendments to the Australian Extradition Act further permit the government to introduce regulations, with little public scrutiny, to do likewise for other offences, such as espionage or sedition.
https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2012/04/assa-a12.html
Everyone poo poo'd Assange warnings of his extradition
The judge dismissed it after he was yanked from the embassy which he legally sought asylum in because he was afraid of being extradited. And oh look. Every damn thing he said has come true.
He didn’t skip bail, he sought and was given asylum. It’s really that simple. IMO.
Scientists are concerned that conspiracy theories may die out if they keep coming true at the current alarming rate.
thanks; well done.
my apologies but i'm reading even more poorly that usual as mr. wd has been describing the takeover of the capitol building during a joint session of congress to count the electoral votes.
RT.com has a lot of it, dunno how accurate the reporting is, but this is one: Trump supporters in ARMED STANDOFF with police inside US Capitol as offices evacuated & lawmakers told to don gas masks - reports
another one: ‘We will never concede’: Trump vows to fight on during DC rally as Congress set to certify election for Biden
a third: Woman shot during US Capitol siege dies as Virginia governor declares emergency & curfew kicks in
a bit later? Chaos & protests continue outside US Capitol as DC mayor declares curfew, National Guard fully activated
one ruptly video:
[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GNQRGohdW9Y&feature=emb_logo]
i've twigged now:
the long arm of the vindictive US helped canberra create a law useful against one of the most famous political prisoners on the planet. chippewa AIM leader/member leonard peltier is another, and although the FBI knows he did not murder their two comrades on the pine ridge rez, he's been in prison since 1977. 44 years. he'll die there, of course.
(pretty funny; the source named was 'café babylon: 'Fuck, obomba's denied peltier clemency'.)
correct me if i'm wrong, but as i remember it, once assange was interviewed inside the embassy and swedish prosecutors had dropped the charges, jen robinson said on sky news that later the US demanded that the case be re-opened.
Often these days I sit there --
and watch Sopranos murder videos on YouTube to remind myself of who we're dealing with in the Federal government.
The ruling classes need an extra party to make the rest of us feel as if we participate in democracy. That's what the Democrats are for. They make the US more durable than the Soviet Union was.
i got:
"sign in to confirm your age." we'd never seen the Sopranos; it must have been on cable.
92 yo Assange supporter was arrested today
First I’m seeing this. Will update if I find more.
Scientists are concerned that conspiracy theories may die out if they keep coming true at the current alarming rate.
i'd first seen that dimmick
reTweet on caitlin johnstone's account, but now she' busy kind mocking the DeeCee eevents at the Capitol.
Better view
Scientists are concerned that conspiracy theories may die out if they keep coming true at the current alarming rate.
thank you.
and 'you fucking bastards' is only too right. bless his heart for being there on today of all days.
time for me to shut down for the night.
i'h had too look it up to discover when lady arbuthnot had finally handed the prosecutorial reigns over to vanessa baraitser because: Wikileaks revelations conflict of interest.. it was November 16, 2019
their Tory son of a similar cybersecurity MI-5 ilk as well, as well, but that's not as important.
to them all, and lenin moreno, UC global in spain, liars at the Guardiun, and others: you have caused me to imagine thought crimes against you.
[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nOjHior0RfU]
although i won't let off the hook entirely the many Intercept 'fearless journalists' either, who'd smeared julian as 'the bad whistleblower' and worse many times.
thank you all, and dream of a 'brighter planet' if you can manage it. one not ruled by the dying US empire and its lackeys.
thomas scripps
@ wsws is reporting this morning:
‘Assange denied bail after extradition blocked, will appeal to UK High Court’
now his title is slightly misleading, but we now know on what grounds the appeal will be launched, and it's pretty close to what i' surmised in diary asking the Q. some excerpts:
“WikiLeaks editor-in-chief Kristinn Hrafnsson announced afterwards that Assange’s legal team would be taking the bail decision to the High Court.
Baraitser’s refusal to grant bail confirms that her decision not to extradite was motivated by political considerations and not any genuine concern for Assange’s health. Assange will be kept in conditions which have had a grave impact on his mental health, during a massive escalation of the UK’s COVID-19 epidemic.
Assange’s lawyer made the “wider point” in favour of granting bail that “Throughout the lengthy hearing, the [extradition] request remained the basis of detention, and the basis on which he was refused bail. Now, you have given a considered ruling and you have ordered the discharge of Julian Assange…
“The natural and logical consequence… of that ruling would be that he regains his liberty, at least conditionally. Really every canon of English law over the centuries is that once there’s been a ruling that someone’s entitled to discharge… that that would be a reason for them at least to obtain conditional liberty.”
Speaking outside the court, WikiLeaks editor Kristinn Hrafnsson denounced Baraitser’s decision: “It’s obviously a great disappointment to get this decision now from Judge Baraitser not to release Julian Assange on bail. We think it’s unjust and unfair and illogical when you consider her ruling two days ago about Julian’s health, which of course is caused in large part because he is being held in Belmarsh Prison.
“To send him back there doesn’t make any sense… It’s inhumane, its illogical. This denial of bail will most likely be appealed to the High Court within hours or a few days and we will expect this to be overturned, because frankly as I say, it doesn’t make any sense from any point of view.”
The prosecution described her ruling against extradition as one which “hangs on a single thread”, made solely on the basis of Assange’s mental health and risk of suicide and accepting the US lawyers’ anti-democratic arguments on every other legal point.
Vamos noted in his interview with the Sydney Morning Herald that the appeal would be an opportunity for the American government to secure a reversal of the decision not to extradite by making promises that Assange would be well-treated in the US. “For example, it could agree not to detain him in a particular prison or under certain conditions or to beef up his health care or suicide monitoring.”
Clair Dobbin for the US indicated during Wednesday’s hearing that these plans were already underway: “consideration is also being given to providing undertakings [on mental health care] that meet specific parts of the judgement.”
Several pro-Assange protestors were arrested outside the courthouse on COVID-19 charges, including a 92-year-old man. The police came mob-handed with roughly 50 officers and police vans, in what was clearly an attempt to intimidate future demonstrations of support.
Live-streamed footage from RT shows police assaulting journalists, pushing them out of the way, and physically obstructing and manhandling cameramen, even when they identified themselves as journalists. Independent reporter Gordon Dimmack, who was present, tweeted, “Police have told independent media they have to leave or be arrested.”