An international dispute over accused criminal hacker Lauri Love resolved Tuesday with Britain’s highest court rejecting an appeal brought on behalf of the U.S. Department of Justice, effectively ending a lengthy extradition battle that served as the inaugural test for the so-called Forum Bar meant to protect vulnerable Brits from being tried abroad.
The U.K. High Court has refused to certify an appeal raised by the Crown Prosecution Service on behalf of U.S. authorities seeking Mr. Love’s extradition, leaving in place an earlier ruling that said sending him abroad would be unjust or oppressive, according to the Courage Foundation, an international organization that helped fund Mr. Love’s defense.
“The Americans had already given up on their attempt to actually extradite Lauri but today’s decision means that the High Court ruling stands in full. As a result, there is now very little prospect of any British hacker ever finding themselves in the same position,” Naomi Colvin, the foundation’s acting director, said in a statement.
“The era of the U.S. Department of Justice as world police is over,” added Mr. Love.
A spokesperson for the Justice Department told The Washington Times: “While we are disappointed that leave to appeal was denied, we reiterate the importance of our law-enforcement partnership with the U.K. A key element of that partnership is the U.S.-UK extradition treaty, which is based on similar standards of evidence and guarantees of due process. The United States will continue to seek the extradition of individuals charged with U.S. crimes, including crimes against U.S. persons, property or institutions, just as we will continue to facilitate the extradition of wanted persons to the U.K.”
The CPS did not immediately return a message seeking comment.
Mr. Love, 32, is accused of hacking U.S. Army, FBI and Federal Reserve computers, among other targets, and is the subject of federal indictments unsealed in three separate states during 2013 and 2014. If tried in the U.S. and convicted, he risks decades in federal prison.
The Justice Department has sought Mr. Love’s extradition for years, but his attorneys argued that he was shielded by the Forum Bar — protections introduced in 2013 to protect vulnerable defendants from being extradited abroad — citing factors including his severe depression, Asperger’s syndrome and drug-resistant eczema.
“We come to the conclusion that Mr. Love’s extradition would be oppressive by reason of his physical and mental condition,” the High Court ruled last month. “We accept that the evidence shows that the fact of extradition would bring on severe depression, and that Mr. Love would probably be determined to commit suicide, here or in America.”
The CPS announced after the Feb. 5 ruling that it had applied for leave to clarify a point of law relating to the procedure used in deciding which country a person subject to an extradition request should be tried under, but the High Court ultimately declined Tuesday to consider their case, according to the Courage Foundation.
“In view of the fact that the CPS did not express any view adverse to the prosecution of Mr. Love in the United Kingdom on any of the grounds potentially available to it, this silence is a factor which tells in favor of the forum bar, though it may readily be outweighed by other factors. A positive expression of view, one way or the other, is of much more weight,” reads the part of the Feb. 5 ruling CPS hoped to appeal.
British Prime Minister Theresa Mar introduced the Forum Bar during her stint as home secretary following a similar extradition battle over another autistic British hacker, Gary McKinnon, and Mr. Love’s case marked the first time it was tested in court.
• Andrew Blake can be reached at ablake@washingtontimes.com.
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