Lib Dem president, Tim Farron, has called on Home Secretary, Theresa May, to review her decision to allow Sheffield-student Richard O’Dwyer to be extradited to the US. ‘While it’s important to protect artists and copyright there is a question about just who is responsible for any breach [in this case] anyway. It is ludicrous and the government needs to take a very strong stand on protecting civil liberties,’ said Farron.
Conservative backbenchers have also ben critical of the decision to extradite O’Dwyer, describing it as ‘a thorn in the side of the special relationship.’
The Home Secretary’s decision to approve O’Dwyer’s extradition means that he will face a court hearing and, if sent to the US and found guilty, could face five years in an American prison.
O’Dwyer’s extradition is being sought under the 2003 Extradition Act, which has been accused of being unfairly biased in favour of the US because it only has to show ‘reasonable suspicion’ in order to obtain an extradition, whereas the British Government must show ‘probable cause’ to have a US citizen sent to the UK for trial.
Richard O’Dwyer’s mother, Julia, told MacUser last month that ‘the current arrangements are unbalanced as campaigners have said for years. Other countries such as Ireland and Germany have treaties with the US but will prosecute crimes committed on their own soil in their own country. The US protects its own people by allowing them a proper hearing with evidence to fight extradition to UK.’
US Customs and Immigrations Enforcement (ICE) officials claim that O’Dwyer is guilty of infringing copyright laws because a website he ran, TV Shack, provided links to pirated films and TV programmes. ICE claims that TV Shack earned £147,000 in advertising revenue before it seized the domain in June 2010.
