Published 18:53 IST, September 22nd 2020
Julian Assange heard voices while in solitary confinement: Psychiatrist tells UK Court
Julian Assange's psychiatrist, Michael Kopelman told the court that the editor would be a "very high" suicide risk if he is extradited to the United States.
A London court, hearing WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange's extradition case, was told on September 22 that the 49-year-old publisher heard voices while he was in solitary confinement in his high-security prison cell. Assange's psychiatrist, Michael Kopelman told the court that the editor would be a "very high" suicide risk if he is extradited to the United States. Kopelman cited Assange's so-called mental condition as evidence to support his claim of auditory hallucinations.
Kopelman told the court that Assange is suffering from severe depression and psychotic symptoms and it is likely that he would attempt suicide if he is extradited to the US. Kopelman said that the extradition will trigger suicidal impulses in Assange, which otherwise arise out of clinical factors. Queen's Counsel (QC) James Lewis, the lawyer appearing on behalf of the US government questioned Kopelman over the truthfulness of some of Assange's claim and said that he may have made them up to avoid extradition.
Assange's case
Assange has been charged with the Espionage Act in the United States, where he could receive a maximum prison term of 175 years if found guilty. The US authorities accuse Assange of publishing a series of confidential war-related cables allegedly provided by US Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning, who was later court-martialed in 2013 over violations of the Espionage Act, Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, among other offenses.
Assange's extradition trial began in May 2019 and has been going on ever since. In August 2020, Assange's lawyer told the court that a former US Republican congressman had visited his client at the Ecuadorian embassy in 2017 and had offered a pardon, allegedly on behalf on President Trump if his client agreed to provide the name of who gave WikiLeaks the 2016 Democratic National Committee email leaks.
Updated 18:57 IST, September 22nd 2020