Thread by @MaryKostakidis

I’ll be following the UK High Court Appeal by the US

in the case of Julian #Assange

and **live tweeting**

Starts at 10.30am London time on 11 August - in just a few hours.

You can follow this thread, and quite a few others!

It appears this Court has allowed other observers besides journalists, unlike Judge Baraitser who barred human rights groups and parliamentarians form the Extradition hearing.
Amnesty International’s rep has been approved as was the Australian Parliamentary Assange supportgroup

This is not the US Appeal per se.
Tonight’s preliminary hearing
is to appeal the two (of 5) grounds on which the US was denied permission to appeal.

So tonight, the scope of the appeal will be decided - 3 or 5 grounds, and then a date will be set for the appeal per se.

The 2 grounds that the US will tonight seek to include in their appeal are:

1. That the evidence of neuropsychiatrist Professor Michael Kopelman should have been ruled inadmissible (he determined JA would be at risk of suicide)

And ..

2. That Baraitser erred in her overall assessment of evidence that Assange would be at risk of suicide

The 3 other grounds that were indeed approved, are
1. Baraitser made errors of law in her application of the test under s91 of the Extradition Act
2. She ought to have notified the US of her provisional view so the US could offer assurances to the Court
And..

3. The US has provided assurances responsive to Baraitser’s specific findings ie assurances he would not be held under those conditions (SAMS, ADX) & that the US would agree to transferring him to Aus to serve out his sentence.

Apropos the US assurances: they reserve the right to impose those conditions if circumstances change which renders them, well, not much of an assurance. And any potential transfer to an Aus prison would follow his trial and all avenues of appeal - poss over 10 years, if he lives.

I can now see Courtroom 1 at the Royal Courts of Justice.

The Court Associates are not wearing masks.
That’s a good sign because there were enough audio problems last time without people talking through masks.

Can hear the voice of JA barrister Fitzgerald
and
oh no, I spoke too soon, masked people are arriving.

And barrister Clair Dobbin is there for the US

Fitzgerald & Dobbin exchange a few words.
Fitzgerald audibly: “If the Court gives permission then the Press can have both”.
I wonder if that’s the submissions and the transcript.

Julian. He looks much older. Beard & moustache behind the mask. Wearing full frame glasses, a white shirt.

Dobbin is summarising the US arguments but the audio is lousy. The microphone is too far away from her. I’ve complained..

Hah! The judge has asked her to speak up. I hope he remembers to do so too!

Doesn’t make much difference. Echo.

Can hear intermittently. So frustrating.

Lots of journos complaint about sound. Hard to do a proper job. I’m sorry.