Should Gary McKinnon be extradited to the US?

[shamrock_uk]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/4715612.stm

Potential issues:

1) The evidence against him hasn't been under the scrutiny of a British court

2) We are perfectly capable of trying such an offence in this country

3) The sentence (up to 70 years) is vastly disproportionate to the crime - he wouldn't get that much for murder over here.

4) Our so-called extradition treaty with the US only applies to one-way traffic (and it's not in our direction) and I believe hasn't actually been made law yet.

5) He will be tried in Virginia and accused of being a terrorist - is he likely to get an impartial jury?

So yeah, I think he should be tried here. Would be interested to hear from those with alternative views.


There's also the rather crazy aspects of his story - the fact he could waltz in without passwords, using a dialup modem. I mean, not only is it slightly crazy to run Windows in security-sensitive situations, but the US Navy for example actually runs beta-versions of Microsoft software Time for a change in IT policy? A google for "Windows for warships" will turn up a similar controversy on this side of the Pond.

[Seraph]

There's also the rather crazy aspects of his story - the fact he could waltz in without passwords, using a dialup modem. I mean, not only is it slightly crazy to run Windows in security-sensitive situations,

Is there actually any evidence that this was a "security sensitive situation"? The more I read on this case the more I'm starting to think he 'hacked' into a honeypot.

[shamrock_uk]

Well, assuming the evidence given by the American's isn't just hot air, surely this is enough to show it was security sensitive:

The US government alleges that between February 2001 and March 2002, the 40-year-old computer enthusiast from North London hacked into dozens of US Army, Navy, Air Force, and Department of Defense computers, as well as 16 Nasa computers. It says his hacking caused some $700,000 dollars worth of damage to government systems. What's more, they allege that Mr McKinnon altered and deleted files at a US Naval Air Station not long after the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001 and that the attack rendered critical systems inoperable. The US government also says Mr McKinnon once took down an entire network of 2,000 US Army computers. His goal, they claim, was to access classified information.

It's difficult to see how it could have been a honeypot if their allegations are true. Plus the fact it took place over several years and across multiple targets would make it nigh on impossible that he hit honeypots every time.

[Timber Loftis]

I would not extradite anyone to the US at this time, especially where they may be tried for crimes related to the military, national security, or the like. We cannot be trusted right now, as we don't even honor our own Constitution where these matters are concerned. Our state of affairs is sad, and we cannot be trusted to follow our laws, and it's proven true again and again, day after day.

[True_Moose]

No country should extradite one of its citizens, whose alleged crime occurred on its own soil, to another nation. Even though the question of where exactly the crime was committed (the server's in the US, even though physically he was in London,) is a valid one, I don't think extradition is justifiable in this circumstance.

The US does not extradite its citizens to foreign countries or other jurisdictions (see the International Criminal Court), and cannot reasonably expect other countries to act differently.

On the other hand, the UK really needs to make sure the trial is transparent and thorough. Regardless of the outcome, everything has to appear to end up the same way as it would in a US courtroom.