Even with his apparent medical condition of Ass Burgers Asperger’s it seems he will be extradited anyway according to the UK Home Secretary Alan Johnson.

Let’s hope the US government don’t throw the whole terrorism book at him and he gets charged under computer misuse laws.

Computer hacker Gary McKinnon looks set to face trial in the US after Home Secretary Alan Johnson said there were no grounds to prevent his extradition.

He appeared to have been thrown a lifeline last month when new medical evidence was submitted to Johnson regarded McKinnon’s Asperger’s Syndrome. However, after considering the evidence, Johnson said yesterday that sending McKinnon to the US would not breach his human rights.

“Due to legitimate concerns over Mr McKinnon’s health, we have sought and received assurances from the United States authorities that his needs will be met,” Johnson said.

In an interview with the BBC, McKinnon’s lawyer said his legal team would not give up the fight to prevent McKinnon’s extradition.

It’s fair enough really, I don’t see how the whole Asperger’s thing has anything to do with it. The guy did do something wrong, and he knew it was wrong so it’s not like you can claim insanity.

I just think the whole thing has been totally blown out of proportion, he got into some pretty heavy networks using easily guess passwords.

It’s not like he did some Einstein relative cryptography on US army weapon algorithms.

“We are certainly coming to the end of the road,” said Karen Todner. “We’re just hoping at some point someone sees sense and steps in. All the legal team do know is we cannot give up because in some ways it’s like dealing with a death row case, and we genuinely believe that Gary’s life is at stake here.”

McKinnon’s legal battle dates back to 2001, after he broke into US military computers, including those belonging to NASA, in a bid to prove the US government had knowledge of UFOs.

While he says his actions caused no damage, the US claims he stole 950 passwords, deleted files at a naval base in New Jersey and rendered the military computer networks used following September 11 useless. The US estimates the damage caused by McKinnon at $700,000 (£433,000).

His legal battle has been going for 8 years now, I wonder how much longer it has left to run. I’d say another 1-2 years at minimum.

We’ve been covering it for 3 years already and it’s still nowhere near conclusion.

Either way I wish my fellow brit Gary Mckinnon the best of luck in fighting the behemoth US legal system.

Source: Network World

So you can see the case has been going on for quite some time, the most recent news we published about it was UK Hacker Gary McKinnon Loses Appeal Against Extradition.

But now, the most recent turn of events is that he’s won the right to appeal against extradition, which I guess is quite a big deal for him.

Gary McKinnon, the man accused by U.S. prosecutors of “the biggest military hack of all time,” has won the right to a judicial review of a Home Office decision to extradite him to the U.S.

Lord Justice Maurice Kay made the ruling at the High Court in London on Friday. The Home Office had refused to halt the extradition proceedings, despite McKinnon having been diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome, a condition on the autistic spectrum.

McKinnon’s solicitor Karen Todner told ZDNet UK on Friday that she was “very pleased” about the High Court decision.

“It’s a step in the right direction,” Todner said. “We’ve got permission for a judicial review, and that shows we have an arguable case.”

McKinnon’s legal team applied for the review on the grounds that McKinnon’s medical condition had not been taken into account by the Home Office or any UK court in deciding his extradition. If convicted by the U.S., McKinnon faces a 70-year sentence in a maximum security prison, his barrister Edward Fitzgearld QC has argued.

It seems like they brought up his medical condition (Asperger’s) as an excuse to appeal against extradition, although I can’t blame them as the possible 70 year sentence does seem a little on the extrame to say he didn’t do any real damage.

Hopefully the judicial review will actually apply some common sense to the case and make a decent logical decision based on McKinnon’s actual crime, circumstance and condition.

Todner said the review was granted on the grounds that the extradition may breach Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which states that no one shall be subjected to “inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.”

Professor Simon Baron Cohen, the Cambridge University specialist in developmental psychopathology who initially diagnosed McKinnon, said on Tuesday that McKinnon suffered the risk of “psychiatric difficulties” including depression and anxiety should he be extradited and imprisoned.

Home secretary Jacqui Smith turned down McKinnon’s second appeal against extradition in October 2008, after the diagnosis of Asperger’s syndrome in summer 2008.

The judicial review will not take place until after the director of public prosecutions, Keir Starmer, has decided whether to charge McKinnon. McKinnon sent a signed confession to Starmer in December admitting offenses under Section 2 of the Computer Misuse Act, in the hope of being prosecuted under UK law.

It looks like if he plays his cards right he might be able to get prosecuted under the Computer Misuse Act, under UK law rather than being tried as a terrorist in the US (which would obviously yield a much harsher sentence).

It’s taking a long time to pan out though, I wouldn’t like to be in McKinnon’s position right now either way – the big dogs are gunning for him and he’s gonna take some kind of fall.

Source: Cnet (Thanks Navin)

Sadly it seems he lost his appeal in the European Court of Human Rights and he is to face immediate extradition and trial in the US possibly still under charges of terrorism, which is ridiculous.

The British hacker facing extradition to the US for breaking into the computer systems of the Pentagon and NASA has lost his appeal with the European Court of Human Rights.

Gary McKinnon (42) was hoping to be tried in the UK where the alleged offences took place. The Glaswegian now faces immediate extradition for trial.

McKinnon lost an appeal in the House of Lords last month and applied to the European court for temporary relief on August 12. After yesterday’s verdict, that relief will no longer apply.

So the decision is out finally, after temporary relief until August 28th he was safe in the UK but now extradition has been granted he will be heading to the US.

I hope they don’t try and make an example of him because he doesn’t wish to comply with their wishes, apparently he has Asperger’s too (a form of autism).

He has previously declined a deal with the US authorities in which he would receive a shorter sentence in return for a guilty appeal. He now faces up to 60 years in prison although the sentence is likely to be much shorter.

McKinnon’s lawyers are now appealing to the home secretary to allow their client to be tried in the UK as he has recently been diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome.

McKinnon denies his activities were a threat to US security and claims he was then motivated by a belief that the computer systems contained information about UFOs that was being concealed from the public.

I really wonder what kind of sentence he will get, he surely won’t get the full 60 years terrorism sentence but still they could be harsh with him.

If I had to make a conservative guess I’d say 3-5 years in the clink, up to a maximum of about 7.

I really hope he doesn’t get that though and get’s 6-12 months in a low security facility.

Source: Tech Radar (Thanks Navin)

The first post on the case was over 2 years ago in April 2006 when it was found out that British Hacker Gary McKinnon Fears Guantanamo.

Mr McKinnon, 42, first lost his case at the High Court in 2006 before taking it to the highest court in the UK, the House of Lords. He was arrested in 2002 but never charged in the UK.

The US government claims he committed a malicious crime – the biggest military computer hack ever. The authorities have warned that without his co-operation and a guilty plea the case could be treated as terrorism and he could face a long jail sentence.

Mr McKinnon, now living in north London, told BBC Radio 5 Live he was “pretty broken up” by the Law Lords’ ruling, although he had expected the outcome.

He lost the case in Lords’ by the looks of it so now he’s in pretty hot soup. It looks like if he pleads guilty he might get a lot lighter sentence and more lenient treatment.

But that’s what they always say isn’t it? Until you actually say you are guilty then they lock you up for life and throw away the key. He better be careful with whatever he’s planning, very careful indeed.

The Law Lords were told by Mr McKinnon’s lawyers that extraditing him would be an abuse of proceedings.

US authorities had threatened him with a long jail sentence if he did not plead guilty, they said.

If the case was treated as terrorism it could result in a sentence of up to 60 years in a maximum security prison, should he be found guilty on all six indictments.

With co-operation, he would receive a lesser sentence of 37 to 46 months and be repatriated to the UK, where he could be released on parole and charges of “significantly damaging national security” would be dropped.

A Home Office spokesman said Mr McKinnon would have 14 days in which to seek appeal at the European Court of Human Rights.

I don’t think it’s really a human rights case, but then it’s debatable. I think saying it’s terrorism is way out of line though, it’s a guy who did a bit of hacking on the wrong systems…he should pay for it yes, but now with 60 years in a maximum security facility in the US.

Maybe a few months in a UK prison then parole.

Source: BBC News (Thanks razta)

At least he seems to be getting a break in the case as he’s won the right to have his extradition case heard by the House of Lords.

Gary McKinnon, the ex-systems administrator accused of conducting the biggest military hack of all time, has won the right to have his case against extradition to the US heard by the House of Lords.

The decision gives McKinnon and legal team a fresh chance to challenge the extradition, having argued previously that the US authorities acted in an “oppressive” manner to secure his removal from the UK.

McKinnon has always maintained that, since the alleged offences took place in the UK, the UK is where he should stand trial. No date has been set for the House of Lords hearing and he remains on bail.

The last time we head about the case he was about to be extradited to the US under the terrorism act, bad news. At least it looks like he might get a fair trial.

McKinnon has always maintained that, since the alleged offences took place in the UK, the UK is where he should stand trial. No date has been set for the House of Lords hearing and he remains on bail.

“Gary McKinnon is delighted to learn of this important development,” said his barrister, Ben Cooper.

McKinnon, who is accused of causing £475,000 worth of damage to computers by hacking into systems belonging to the Pentagon, Nasa and the US military from his home in North London, could face a life sentence in jail with no chance of repatriation if he is extradited to the US.

At a hearing in February that went against McKinnon, his lawyers claimed that under human rights law he had a right to be tried in the UK.

If you are not familiar with this case you can catch up on our first post here:

British Hacker Gary McKinnon Fears Guantanamo

And why he got busted:

Gary McKinnon Busted Because he Forgot the Time Difference

Source: Computer World