US Mulls Plea Deal for Assange, Potentially Averting Extradition

The proposed plea agreement could see the WikiLeaks founder plead guilty to a lesser charge, with his UK prison time counting towards his sentence.

The US Department of Justice is considering a plea deal for Julian Assange, allowing him to plead guilty to a lesser charge of mishandling classified information to avoid extradition.
Assange has been in a legal battle to avoid extradition to the US, where he faces up to 175 years in prison on espionage charges for publishing classified files.
The plea deal would count Assange's time spent in UK prison towards his US sentence, potentially leading to his immediate release.
A UK court is currently reviewing Assange's appeal against extradition, citing threats to his free speech rights and concerns about his mental health.
The case has sparked debate over press freedom and the rights of journalists under the First Amendment of the US Constitution.