LONDON (AP) — Lawyers acting on behalf of the U.S. government on Wednesday challenged a British judge’s decision to block the extradition of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange to face espionage charges in the United States, arguing that assessments of Assange’s mental health should be reviewed.
The British judge ruled in January that Assange was likely to kill himself if held under harsh U.S. prison conditions. The U.S. government is appealing.
Clair Dobbin, a British lawyer who represented U.S. authorities during a High Court preliminary hearing on Wednesday, said that District Judge Vanessa Baraitser based her decision not to extradite Assange on a “predicted risk of suicide” rather than the risk at the time the matter was before her.
Dobbin said both the ruling and the evaluations of psychiatrists needed to be scrutinized given the “extraordinary lengths” Assange went to before his arrest in London to avoid legal proceedings. After skipping bail to avoid extradition to Sweden alleged sexual assault,…
