NASA hacker takes case to High Court

In an apparent last-ditch effort to avoid extradition to the US, accused NASA hacker Gary McKinnon is taking his case to the UK's High Court.

Late last month, Home Secretary Alan Johnson said that after reviewing medical reports and court filings for McKinnon - who suffers from Asperger's Syndrome, a form of autism - he found no evidence of why the 43-year-old should avoid extradition.

As expected, McKinnon last week filed for a judicial review of the British minister's decision, according to published reports. The home secretary now has 14 days to respond, or a High Court judge will review the case.

According to the BBC, these filings include an updated medical report and two reports relating to how American prisons would deal with his condition.

McKinnon, 43, is accused of hacking into 97 computers operated by the US government, including those of the Pentagon, Army, Air Force and NASA. American authorities have said his actions resulted in a shutdown of the Army's Military District of Washington network, containing more than 2,000 computers and resulting in US$700,000 in damage.

See original article on scmagazineus.com