Home Secretary To Rule On Gary McKinnon Case By Mid-October

The home secretary’s decision on whether to extradite hacker Gary Mckinnon to the US will be made by mid-October, London’s High Court heard today.

McKinnon allegedly hacked into US military systems ten years ago, but his extradition was suspended in 2010 as it was claimed he suffered from Asperger’s syndrome and was a suicide risk.

Last week, McKinnon refused to undergo further medical tests, as his backers said the Home Office-appointed expert, Professor Thomas Fahy did not have the right experience. They also claimed McKinnon has repeatedly been seen by independent specialists who have concluded he is a risk.

Home secretary Theresa May was believed to be close to a decision, but had expressed concerns that McKinnon chose not to have an additional medical test. In three months, she will have what could be the final say in the decade-long case.

A lengthy ordeal

McKinnon has claimed he was not intending to steal information from US systems, including those belonging to the Pentagon and NASA, but was only looking for evidence of contact between extra-terrestrial beings and the US authorities. The litigants claim he caused $700,000 (£445,000) of damage.

Last week, Mckinnon’s mother Janis Sharp said the ordeal had “gone on for far too long”. “The Home Office should accept the very clear and incontrovertible evidence provided by the country’s leading psychiatric experts in this field,” she added.

“It’s time to make the right decision and end Gary’s torment of extradition.

“When he’s fit and ready, as we have said all along, the CPS could try him in this country for his foolish acts that happened over a decade ago.”

Once the case is concluded, it is likely to have major ramifications for the UK’s extradition laws, codified in the 2003 Extradition Act. That Act is the subject of much scrutiny, as many believe it is too favourable to the US.

The other major ongoing extradition case is that of Richard O’Dwyer, a Sheffield student who is facing Copyright-related charges in the US. O’Dwyer created TVShack.net, a site that linked to content, some of which was online illegally. He now faces up to 10 years in jail if found guilty in the US, but Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales has held a meeting with the home secretary to see if the decision to extradite O’Dwyer can be overturned.

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