This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-19744724
The article has changed 7 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Chief Justice's 'fury' at Abu Hamza-style legal delays | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| The Lord Chief Justice has said legal cases which go on for years - such as that of Abu Hamza al-Masri - are a "source of real fury", to him. | |
| Lord Judge, the most senior judge in England and Wales, told reporters that any case taking eight years was "not fair to anybody - it's not right". | Lord Judge, the most senior judge in England and Wales, told reporters that any case taking eight years was "not fair to anybody - it's not right". |
| He spoke after a High Court judge halted the extradition of Abu Hamza to the US on terror charges. | He spoke after a High Court judge halted the extradition of Abu Hamza to the US on terror charges. |
| The radical cleric will outline an appeal at a hearing next week. | The radical cleric will outline an appeal at a hearing next week. |
| Lord Judge said he could not comment on any individual case. | Lord Judge said he could not comment on any individual case. |
| But he added: "Any case that takes eight years through a whole series of judicial processes to come to a conclusion - and you've made the point that it hasn't yet come to a conclusion - is a source of real fury to me." | But he added: "Any case that takes eight years through a whole series of judicial processes to come to a conclusion - and you've made the point that it hasn't yet come to a conclusion - is a source of real fury to me." |
| Abu Hamza was arrested on a US extradition warrant in London in May 2004 for allegedly planning to set up a terrorism training camp in Oregon and assisting in taking hostages in Yemen. | |
| A lengthy legal battle, involving judges from the High Court and the Court of Appeal, home secretaries, the House of Lords and the European Court of Human Rights, has yet to reach its conclusion. | |
| Lord Judge said: "What you need is a process in which all the points which need to be addressed are addressed once and then there is an appeal process and it comes to an end. | |
| "Any case that takes eight years - unless there's some extraordinary explanation, like the parties don't want it, they're not in a hurry - is unacceptable. | |
| "People have to live their lives and they have to live their lives knowing where they stand." | |
| He said that, in cases of alleged terrorism, there was "a great public interest in disposing of them, fairly, justly, but with speed". | |
| On Monday, the European court ruled that Abu Hamza and four other suspects should stand trial in the US. | |
| But the Judicial Office said on Wednesday that Abu Hamza and one of the other suspects, Khaled Al-Fawwaz, were "seeking injunctions preventing their removal from the UK". | |
| Interim injunctions have been issued preventing their extradition ahead of a two-day hearing which starts on Tuesday. | |
| The pair will need to prove to a judge that there is "some new and compelling factor" that has not been already considered by previous courts. | |
| Court documents obtained by the BBC show that one of Abu Hamza's grounds for appeal is that he does not have a passport. | |
| BBC home affairs correspondent Dominic Casciani said Abu Hamza's lawyers would ask for for a "mandatory order" for the return of his confiscated British passport and costs for the legal action. | |
| In a claim submitted to the High Court on Tuesday, they stated they wanted a judicial review of the home secretary's "decision to recall the claimant's British passport and to refuse to return it". | |
| The BBC already understands that Abu Hamza's second ground for challenging his extradition relates to his mental health. | |
| Separate legal papers in the case of Mr al-Fawwaz reveal that he wants judges to stop his extradition because of internal US government telexes questioning whether he should be on an official list of terrorism suspects. |