Gary McKinnon extradition to US blocked by Theresa May, page 1

Gary McKinnon extradition to US blocked by Theresa May

www.bbc.co.uk

British computer hacker Gary McKinnon will not be extradited to the US, Home Secretary Theresa May has announced.

Mr McKinnon, 46, who admits accessing US government computers but claims he was looking for evidence of UFOs, has been fighting extradition since 2002.

The home secretary said there was no doubt Mr McKinnon was "seriously ill" and the extradition warrant against him should be withdrawn.

(visit the link for the full news article)



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I've been waiting for this news for quite a while, given statements made by numerous politicians (including the current Prime Minister here in the UK).

Gary Mckinnon is the UFO hacker seeking to avoid extradition to the US to face trial for hacking into US military networks. For anyone unfamiliar with him, he can be seen in the old video below:



Prior to the election, the Conservative Party had voiced support for Gary Mckinnon and pledged itself to reforming the lopsided extradition treaty.

Whether or not Gary McKinnon saw anything of interest when hacking American computers, his case is interesting because of the issues it raised about UK extradition rules. It has provoked quite a bit of debate - far beyond the UFO community.

www.bbc.co.uk
(visit the link for the full news article)

The main stream media is reporting the news.

More from The Telegraph newspaper:

In a surprise move that may lead to diplomatic tensions, Theresa May announced to the House of Commons that he would be spared trial and up to 60 years in jail on human rights grounds.

She said medical reports, which agreed the 46-year-old would kill himself if he were sent to the US, were sufficient grounds to halt the extradition.

Mrs May described the case as “difficult and exceptional” and there was applause in the chamber as she announced that Mr McKinnon would be spared the ordeal of trial overseas.

and The Independent newspaper:
www.independent.co.uk... -extradite-someone-to-the-us-8212702.html

The shock decision will be hailed as a significant milestone for those who have campaigned against the perceived one-sided nature of Britain’s extradition agreement with the United States

and the Daily Mail newspaper:
www.dailymail.co.uk...

Gary McKinnon saved from extradition by Theresa May as medical reports say he is not fit to stand trial in US
Gary will not be forced to stand trial in America over hacking into Pentagon computers
Medical experts say there is a very real suicide risk
His mother Janis says his 10-year fight has been torture
Decision is a victory for the Mail's Affront to British Justice campaign
Home Secretary Theresa May has sanctioned introduction of the 'forum' bar
Means a court hearing must be held to decide where a person stands trial

Brief TV news item on this development:

reply to post by IsaacKoi

---

I will get flamed for this, particularly here on ATS, but i have absolutely no sympathy for Gary McKinnon. If you can't do the time, don't do the crime. Very simple really.

However, regarding the extradition, i never really understood the need as his sentence could easily be served over here. He isn't accused of murder, drug trafficking, terrorism or even passing on the files that he did hack. He simply snooped.

As the crime was against the state (regime) of the US, it does make sense for him to be tried in the USA or at least for the US judicial process to be applied to him. Certainly no need to serve a sentence over there though. Aside from anything else, why waste US taxpayers money to jail someone over there who isn't a threat?

reply to post by IsaacKoi

---

Great news indeed.

Hopefully it will open the dabate about the ridiculous one sided extradition agreement the UK has with the US.

reply to post by Flavian

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You are right in the fact he did a crime, and knowingly hacked a system.....There should have been charges brought up. .if someone broke into my home and was caught , it's a crime. I would press charges. Even if the burglar was just " snooping" and didnt take anything...it's still a crime. ..(.especially federal property. ).... If the burgular was in my home just looking to see what kind of a tv i had, its still breaking and entering.. And id be pissed. Would you? He broke into the U.S. system, and it was wrong. I dont care if he was looking for UFO information, or nuclear information, he was wrong. ......But, on the flip side who knows what else he saw, and maybe he is being saved from extradition so he tell all he now knows. ....Maybe he is just THAT smart that he knew he would get away with it, he knew he could hack the system, and by cracking a deal to tell what he discovered.....he'd be saved.

reply to post by Juggernog

---

From what I can gather from British news outlets, I would safely assume that "seriously ill" comment is regarding his mental well-being. Doctors and his family have said he would probably kill himself if he was extradited.

ETA

@ those of you suggesting he has inside info to bargain with, I seriously doubt that. If British intelligence hasnt gotten any information out of him by now he probably doesnt know anything.

@ those of you acting like he's got away with his crimes, c'mon ... He will still be charged in England, just not extradited to the USA.

reply to post by r2d246

---

Thing is, he doesn't have "skills".. He "hacked" into an unsecured part of the US Government network by using default passwords. Nothing rocket sciency about that.

Initially I had no sympathy for him, really. Still don't to be truthful. I do have issues with the length of sentence he could have faced for a seemingly innocuous offence, all things considered.

What I am pleased about is the UK finally standing up to this one way extradition "treaty", by which I mean the US has to prove nothing to pick off a UK citizen, but we have to prove total guilt to get a US one.

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