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London Judge Grants Bail to Julian Assange, Sweden Files Appeal

by Amar Toor on December 14, 2010 at 02:30 PM

Julian Assange
A court in London has granted bail to Wikileaks founder Julian Assange, just a few days after the elusive Australian turned himself in to the authorities. The 39-year old is facing allegations of rape, molestation and illegal use of force, stemming from separate alleged incidents in Stockholm reported over the summer. Assange came to British police last week in response to a European arrest warrant that Swedish authorities had first issued in November, and was in custody until today.

In court today, Assange's lawyers argued that their client should be presumed innocent, because he is only wanted for questioning, and has not been officially charged. The presiding magistrate, Judge Howard Riddle, agreed, and set Assange's bail at roughly $315,000, along with two sureties of $31,500 each. The magistrate also ordered that Assange be placed on house arrest, at the Suffolk mansion of Vaughan Smith, a former British Army officer who offered his home to the Australian. Assange will have to spend at least four hours at Smith's home every day, and at least four hours overnight. He will have to check in with law enforcement officials every day, he will wear an electronic monitoring device, and his passport will be held by police.

Riddle denied Assange's first request for bail on December 7th. Today, he cited four reasons behind his initial ruling: the evidence against Assange, confusion over how he had entered the U.K., his lack of a fixed domicile, and lingering uncertainty over whether Assange was wanted for questioning or prosecution.

Not long after today's ruling, though, Swedish prosecutors filed an appeal, meaning that Assange will have to remain in jail for the next 48 hours, at which point the next hearing will take place. "The court has already found that Mr. Assange is a flight risk," said Gemma Lindfield, the attorney representing the Swedish prosecution. "Nothing has changed in this regard." Lindfield added that if Assange was facing the same allegations in Britain, "it undoubtedly would have been a charge of rape in this jurisdiction."

Assange himself was reportedly stoic in the courtroom, but he certainly seems no less committed to his cause. Today, an Australian network, Seven News, broadcast a statement that Assange had written to his mother -- his first correspondence since being jailed. His mom, Christine, reportedly asked her son whether it had all been worth it. His response read: "My convictions are unfaltering. I remain true to the ideals I have expressed. This circumstance shall not shake them. If anything this process has increased my determination that they are true and correct."

Tags: bail, court, julian assange, JulianAssange, law, london, politics, rape, sweden, top, Wikileaks

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