RantCrush Top 5: May 19, 2017

Swedish prosecutors are dropping the rape investigation into Julian Assange, the Wikileaks founder who has been holed up in the Ecuadorian embassy in London since 2012. Assange was accused of rape by two women from Stockholm in 2010. If Assange is extradited to Sweden on those charges, he could end up being sent to the United States, where he is wanted for his role in leaking sensitive information.

But, because Assange has spent five years hiding in the Ecuadorian embassy and Sweden has no way to serve him an arrest warrant, Swedish prosecutor Marianne Ny said the warrant is being revoked. That doesn’t mean that Assange is a free man–the U.K. has already said that if he leaves the embassy he will be arrested on charges of failing to surrender to a court. It’s unclear if the U.K. would extradite him to the United States. If he returns to Sweden before 2020, the end of the statute of limitations, the investigation could be reopened. So for now, it seems likely that Assange will remain in his self-imposed prison. He doesn’t seem particularly happy about that:

Detained for 7 years without charge by while my children grew up and my name was slandered. I do not forgive or forget.

— Julian Assange (@JulianAssange) May 19, 2017

Anneliese Mahoney

Anneliese Mahoney is Managing Editor at Law Street and a Connecticut transplant to Washington D.C. She has a Bachelor’s degree in International Affairs from the George Washington University, and a passion for law, politics, and social issues. Contact Anneliese at amahoney@LawStreetMedia.com.