In a growing effort to find something, anything, with which to charge WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, the Justice Department is reportedly studying a collection of chat logs from ex-hacker Adrian Lamo as possible evidence of “conspiracy” against Assange.
Officials are said to be hoping that they can find some evidence from the chat logs that Pfc. Bradley Manning was “encouraged” by Assange to produce the leaks. Assange has made general calls for people across the planet to leak information, but specifics regarding any contacts he may have had with Manning have not been made public.
And even if the chat logs contained some hint at this, experts say it would likely be challenged as hearsay evidence. Barring their convincing Manning to testify against Assange, which seems extremely unlikely at this point, such evidence might not even be accepted.
The ability to prosecute Manning is not in serious doubt, as he is an active duty member or the US Army and subjected to the military’s legal code. The claims that they could successfully prosecute Assange, or indeed random journalists covering the leaks, under the Espionage Act seems unclear at best. The effort to find a “conspiracy” charge may be an effort to avoid such a constitutional challenge.
Reports from Assange’s lawyer suggest that a grand jury may have already been empaneled in the US to try to prosecute Assange for something or other, and it seems the US has already approached Sweden in the hopes of acquiring Assange from them in case they can secure him from Britain.
T is amazing how American politicians and diplomats are baying for the blood of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, whose crime, if it is a crime at all, was to bring on the blushes for laying bare the truth.
It now appears that the British would hand the man over to Sweden for alleged sexual offences.
And, the Americans would undoubtedly press Sweden for the extradition of Assange to the United States for a "fair trial" on alleged crimes which he did not commit on US soil in the first place.
The Americans are self-centred by any standards. If they care to refresh their memories, the Bhopal catastrophe in India in 1984 should ring a bell.
The Union Carbide factory in Bhopal blew its lid off, spewing a large amount of cyanide gas across the Indian countryside, killing some 30,000 people and injuring 500,000 others.4
For almost three decades, the Indian courts had sought to have the US extradite Union Carbide chief executive Warren Anderson to face charges of manslaughter in India, but to no avail.
The world witnessed five American presidents turn down the request to have Anderson handed over. To the Americans, the death of 30,000 Indians and the maiming of half a million more is chicken-feed compared with the embarrassment that was visited on them by WikiLeaks. Double standards without a doubt.
Ironically, what WikiLeaks has now made public, demonstrates what transparency is all about. But the Americans are feeling hot under the collar for hiding truths from the very public that put them into power.
What WikiLeaks has laid bare for all to see is nothing more than open secrets.
Dr Soorian Malaysia
BRAVO
Which shows you banana republic logic about what laws are for.
Doesn't this make the Justice Department 'Conspiracy Theorists'?
Funny they couldn't get Roman Polanski when he sodomized a 13 year old girl he drugged….. For Real.
These phony rape charges are ridiculous.
The USA is LawLESS entity and has been for a long, long time! Sure they have the "constitution", but USSR claimed to have had one to.
I feel like we in the USA will soon be living like citizens in the old USSR or Third Reich Germany.
The people voted for change in 2008, giving Obama the W House, and the Dems 60 senators and a 60 plus seat majority in the House. And we have sat thru two years of pretense — reenforced by the mass media — that we have to continue these right wing policies associated with the GOP cuz the Dems did not have the power to do anything. We have two right wing, parties now, solely owned by the uber rich. I can't believe I fell for Obama's BS — and that some supporters are still buying into the story line
I believe this is what you call IRONY.
come on!? proof? motives?
You are the United states justices department!
just charge julian assange with launching and wagging two wars of aggressions
The conspiracy angle may be to get around the problems of an extradition for political crimes. The U.S. succeeded in legally kidnapping a British businessman and convicting him of "conspiracy to obstruct justice". http://blog.mises.org/14981/doj-kidnapping-false-…
Interesting, thanks.
With a Senate composed of people not even qualified for being dog catchers much less legistating laws in a democracy we are doomed to lunatic behavior and that is what we are getting – and the worst is yet to come.
The problem is that it is hard to see what US charge could be brought against Assange that would not be political and one of the exceptions to the general public international law rule that persons wanted on criminal charges must be extradited is precisely, political offences and offences connected with political offences. That, indeed, is why a rape charge had to be cooked up in a non-NATO country! In theory, therefore, although he COULD be extradicted from either Britain or Sweden to the US, he shouldn't be, and public opinion in both countries would probably be very hostile to extradition. If he was extradited, the US would in fact do itself even more damage than has already been done. Let's see if the US government is that stupid!
Are you betting on the stupidity of the US government? I've got 100 bucks on the table that says they are.
T'would not surprise me if Mr. Lamo is the one who did the "encouraging." Weren't these logs already released – by Mr. Lamo? Don't remember reading anything even remotely pointing to Assange. Are they going to charge Lamo with conspiracy if that is so? Doubt it – he's more likely a USG plant/tool anyway. But, that's just this old Curmudgeon's opinion…
It's a "conspiracy" on the part of Assange to show the world how utterly idiotic US foreign policy in practice really is. Seems that Justice is after the wrong guy. Hmmm, would Eric 'the lame' Holder persecute Assange for conspiracy to prove arrogance?
If you like, I'll be happy to produce a chat log proving that JFK ordered his own assassination because he was so heartbroken over not having married Marilyn instead of Jackie. I can also show you chat logs showing that John Wilkes Booth was single-handedly responsible for bringing down the World Trade Center buildings using common household chemicals and a formula he learned from 'MacGuyver'.
I view with extreme suspicion ANY 'chat log' held up as proof of anything. Pakistan has already shown us the ease of which an official cable can be faked- why not a simple chat log?
"It's a "conspiracy" on the part of Assange to show the world how utterly idiotic US foreign policy in practice really is. Seems that Justice is after the wrong guy. Hmmm, would Eric 'the lame' Holder persecute Assange for conspiracy to prove arrogance?"
Idiotic or CRIMINAL..??
One would think enough crime was committed during the Bush spree to keep justice busy exposing those crimes and trying to prosecute THEM for decades, without reaching out to snare international whistle blowers… Doing such could be a chargable war crime per se… Holder should be careful what…..who they ask for….. They could get "more" than they bargained for… It could amount to something far worse than a crime……..an unforced error ..!!!
Hi MvGuy:
And the congregation shall say AMEN! Holder, for the most part, seems to crap all over himself when it comes to actual prosecutions. Of say maybe like war criminals and such.
the us unjustice department is just doing their dirty job
Manning might be tortured into confessing conspiracy, or anything else, with Assange. And vice versa, once the Disgusting Nation gets its paws on Assange.
I read the article on the NYT today and it tells me a lot more. In reality, the US is trying to get a "confession" out of Manning so that they can nail Assange with. Heavens that has worked marvelously against those poor schmucks who have involuntarily resided at Guantanamo for the last 8 years or so. It's all here for those who can interpret what is being said:
* * * * * * *
U.S. Tries to Build Case for Conspiracy by WikiLeaks
Justice Department officials are trying to find out whether Mr. Assange encouraged or even helped the analyst, Pfc. Bradley Manning, to extract classified military and State Department files from a government computer system. If he did so, they believe they could charge him as a conspirator in the leak, not just as a passive recipient of the documents who then published them.
Among materials prosecutors are studying is an online chat log in which Private Manning is said to claim that he had been directly communicating with Mr. Assange using an encrypted Internet conferencing service as the soldier was downloading government files. Private Manning is also said to have claimed that Mr. Assange gave him access to a dedicated server for uploading some of them to WikiLeaks.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/16/world/16wiki.ht…
RE: Johnny_Warbucks' post –
I concur that the USG is busting a gut to squeeze a 'confession' out of Manning, but seeing as the conditions of his imprisonment have already been shown to be tantamount to psychological torture, isn't it already precedent that confessions that are uttered under torture or coercion are not allowed as evidence? Wasn't that the whole case in the most recent Show Trial?
On another note, I repeat my position that chat logs are easily faked and as such can only be viewed as hearsay and thus not admissable as evidence. Maybe I'll gin up a chat log in which I can show beyond a shadow of a doubt that the USG promised me cash for being a model citizen. Think that will fly? I f I can fake a chat log, why wouldn't the USG be able to when it suits their purpose?