US Government Rejects Calls To End Assange Case, Submits 'Non-Assurances' For Extradition

• Instead of ending the case, the U.S. State Department provided a diplomatic note to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) that contained assurances related to the First Amendment and the risk of the death penalty - issues raised by Assange’s legal team and upheld by the High Court.
• “Assange will not be prejudiced by reason of nationality with respect to which defenses he may seek to raise at trial and at sentencing. Specifically, if extradited, Assange will have the ability to raise and seek to rely upon at trial (which includes any sentencing hearing) the rights and protections given under the First Amendment of the Constitution of the United States,” the U.S. Embassy in London claimed.

“A decision as to the applicability of the First Amendment is exclusively within the purview of the U.S. Courts,” the U.S. embassy added.

• “The United States has issued a non-assurance in relation to the First Amendment and a standard assurance in relation to the death penalty. It makes no undertaking to withdraw the prosecution's previous assertion that Julian has no First Amendment rights because he is not a U.S citizen,” Stella Assange said in response.

“Instead, the U.S. has limited itself to blatant weasel words claiming that Julian can ‘seek to raise’ the First Amendment if extradited,” she added.

• A hearing on the assurances will take place on May 20. If the High Court is satisfied by the assurances, including the reasoning for why the First Amendment does not extend to Assange, then Assange will be denied an appeal against extradition.
• Assange recently began his fifth year imprisoned in London's Belmarsh high-security jail. He is currently up against 17 charges under the Espionage Act and one for conspiracy to commit computer intrusion. Each charge correlates with regular newsgathering practices. 

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