This was published 8 months ago
Assange supporters welcome possible plea deal with US
By Matthew Knott
Julian Assange’s supporters say they are thrilled by the prospect of a plea deal with the United States Justice Department that would allow the WikiLeaks founder to avoid the threat of a lengthy jail term in America.
The Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday that the Justice Department was considering whether to allow Assange to plead guilty to a reduced charge of mishandling classified information rather than more serious espionage charges, citing people familiar with the matter.
Julian Assange leaves London’s Westminster Magistrates’ Court in 2020.Credit: Getty Images
Such a deal would potentially allow Assange to enter a plea to the misdemeanour charge remotely, and walk free without travelling to the US, which has been seeking his extradition from the United Kingdom for years.
Assange’s legal team said it was inappropriate to comment while his case was before the UK High Court other than to say it had been given no indication that the US Justice Department intended to resolve the case.
“The United States is continuing with as much determination as ever to seek his extradition on all 18 charges, exposing him to 175 years in prison,” Assange’s Washington-based lawyer, Barry Pollack, said in a statement.
A spokesperson for the Justice Department declined to comment on the report.
Independent MP Andrew Wilkie, one of Assange’s biggest champions in federal parliament, said many Australians would be heartened by the report of a possible deal.
“Personally, I’d be thrilled with a breakthrough because this injustice has been wrong from the start and must be brought to an end,” he said.
Wilkie, who travelled to the UK for Assange’s most recent extradition appeal hearing, added: “In any case, the US extradition should be abandoned, the charges dropped and Julian reunited with his family and allowed to return home.
“However, we need to be mindful that it’s entirely up to Julian to decide what is the best way forward for him from here.”
US ambassador to Australia Caroline Kennedy flagged a possible plea deal in an interview with this masthead last year, saying “there absolutely could be a resolution” to the Assange case.
The WSJ said that in recent months, officials at the Justice Department and Assange’s legal team had had preliminary discussions about a plea deal but the discussions “remain in flux and the talks could fizzle”.
Assange is battling extradition to the US, where he is wanted on criminal charges over the release of confidential US military records and diplomatic cables in 2010. Washington says the release of the documents put lives in danger.
Assange’s supporters say he has been victimised because he exposed US wrongdoing, including in conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Multiple rights groups, leading media organisations and the leaders of countries such as Mexico, Brazil and Australia have urged the charges against Assange, who is an Australian citizen, be dropped.
Assange has been languishing in a UK prison since 2019, after the US charged him and police dragged him from the Ecuadorian embassy in London.
with Reuters
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