Trevor Timm, the cofounder of the Freedom of the Press Foundation, told the UK court that is deciding on the extradition request filed by the US government against Wikileaks founder Julian Assange on Wednesday that in his view, the US indictment was "clearly unconstitutional," and if this were to go forward it would potentially criminalize all news organizations
LONDON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 09th September, 2020) Trevor Timm, the cofounder of the Freedom of the Press Foundation, told the UK court that is deciding on the extradition request filed by the US government against Wikileaks founder Julian Assange on Wednesday that in his view, the US indictment was "clearly unconstitutional," and if this were to go forward it would potentially criminalize all news organizations.
The US media expert gave his testimony via video link from the United States, as a witness for Assange's legal team.
According to Timm, there have been numerous attempts by the US government to use the Espionage Act against journalists, but none have ever been successful due to concerns regarding violations of the First Amendment of the US Constitution.
Courts in the US have explicitly and implicitly recognized that any attempt to seek criminal or civil sanctions against the press for appearing to incentivize sources to supply information on newsworthy topics faces substantial First Amendment difficulties, the witness said.
Timm defended Assange's right to gather and publish information leaked to him by undisclosed sources as one the pillars of journalism.
"Materials journalists often write about and print do not magically land on their desks. They talk to sources, ask for clarification, ask for more information. This is standard practice for journalists," he added.
The witness also noted that if the rules the US want to apply to the Wikileaks founder for the publication of classified information on the Iraqi and Afghan wars had been applied in the 1970s, Watergate reporters John Woodward and Carl Bernstein would have been criminalized.
"I myself have advocated for leaks in cases where the US secrecy system is hiding abuse, corruption, or illegal acts, and no-one has ever suggested I was committing a criminal act," the witness said during the cross-examination by the prosecutors.
The US Department of Justice is seeking to extradite Assange on 18 espionage and computer misuse charges, which carries a sentence as long as 175 years in prison.
The hearing to decide whether Assange should be sent to the United States resumed on Monday at the London Central Criminal Court, after six months of delay due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The WikiLeaks founder, who has been locked up at the maximum-security prison of Belmarsh since his arrest at the Ecuadoran embassy in London in April 2019, is attending the trial from behind a glass panel, away from his defense team.
The hearing is expected to last at least three weeks, and it is highly probable that the verdict will be appealed by the losing side.
