A former American teacher, who was on the FBI’s most wanted list, was charged Tuesday with production and possession of child pornography after his extradition from Nicaragua. Eric Justin Toth, 31, briefly appeared in a Washington court, and was to be held until a preliminary hearing May 23….
Richard O’Dwyer to Return With New Movie/TV Streaming Portal
In 2011, Richard O’Dwyer was arrested by UK police for running TVShack, a site that listed user-submitted links to TV-show streams.
The arrest was followed by an extradition battle with the U.S. Government which ended a few months ago. Richard was granted amnesty after he signed an agreement to pay compensation to rights holders and not to breach copyright in the future.
However, this hasn’t stopped the former TVShack admin from starting a new TV and movie streaming venture.
Richard informs TorrentFreak that he’s working on Filmhub, a new project that will enable TV and movie enthusiasts to stream and discover video content from the major networks and studios. His selling point is a ‘discovery engine’ that makes personal recommendations, allowing people to cut through the trash.
“It could be described as a hub to manage everything you’re watching and wish to watch. What you like and dislike. And importantly delivering Movie & TV suggestions personalized to your own taste and current mood, with features to connect with others and share your opinions,” Richard tells TorrentFreak.
The content will come from authorized sources including Netflix, Amazon and Lovefilm and by offering a one-stop destination for video enthusiasts Richard hopes to fill a gap in the current legal offering.
“As of right now offerings are scattered, simply put it’s a mess. Some services are good for viewing, some for information, some for opinions. The aim with Filmhub is to bring everything into a single reliable source the community can build upon,” he says.
Being a great film and TV fan himself, Richard believes that such a tailored community will give the public a better viewing experience. He also encourages the community to suggest features they want to see, such as a mobile app that’s currently in the works.
Passion for film and TV is one of the main reasons why the former TVShack admin is starting another video hub.
“In the end the reason for returning to this is the emotional connection to film and television. No other medium can make us laugh, cry, jump and send chills down our spines. That’s why I feel it’s important to help more people to discover good content to their individual taste,” Richard says.
Of course he hasn’t forgotten about the events of the past two years. The same companies whose content he will be promoting wanted to see him in a U.S. prison after all. But in hindsight he also learned from the whole ordeal.
“Looking back overall it’s a great shame, but I have no regrets since the whole experience has improved myself both technically and personally,” Richard says.
Since his arrest the Internet has seen an increase in copyright enforcement initiatives and a push for more censorship. Richard hopes that these censorship efforts wont stifle innovation and that the “free” Internet as we know it will remain intact.
“Since it began, online censorship has increased not only in the US but in other nations as they are slowly brought into line with the industries’ will. This damages the Internet as a whole and isn’t what it was designed for. Hopefully we’ll still have an Internet to connect with in 10 years time.”
Richard is thankful for all the people who have supported him throughout his legal battle and he hopes to reward them by providing a great new video platform.
“Thanks goes out all the supporters from many countries. Hopefully this new project is a way to give back to everyone,” Richard concludes.
Filmhub is still in development but those interested in early access can sign up to be notified when it goes live. Definitely a project that’s worth watching.
Source: Richard O’Dwyer to Return With New Movie/TV Streaming Portal
Extradition doesn’t apply to Assange: judge
A Swedish supreme court judge discussing his country’s legal system and the case of WikiLeaks’ founder Julian Assange with Australian students has said that Swedish law prohibits extradition for military or political crimes. … Read More
Ecuador in talks with UK Labour party over Assange – reports
The Ecuadorian government has held talks with the British Labour party to try to strike a deal to send Assange to Sweden to end the political impasse, which has seen the Australian whistleblower holed up in the Ecuadorian embassy since claiming asylum in June last year. The Ecuadorians are setting their sights on a change of government after the 2015 UK election, having “lost all faith” in coming to an agreement with the current coalition. Assange faces rape allegations in Sweden, but has refused to be extradited there for questioning unless he receives assurances that he will not then be re-extradited to the US, where he reportedly faces trial for espionage over his work with WikiLeaks. Assange says he would travel to Sweden to prove his innocence if the US threat were lifted, but British Home Secretary Theresa May has rejected repeated calls to affirm she would refuse a US extradition request. Under Swedish law, Assange can only be formally charged in Sweden after being questioned by police first. Any deal with Labour would leave Assange with little choice but to surrender himself to Swedish authorities.“Ecuador wants to see the current situation resolved but has lost all faith in the current government’s willingness to do that. They have approached the Labour party in the hope of striking a deal for after the election. They do not believe that it is beneficial for Mr. Assange to be resident permanently in the London embassy,” a source told the Independent on Sunday.Quito has maintained that it wants Assange to go to Sweden to face the allegations, as long as there is no threat of extradition to the US. Ecuadorian ambassador Ana Alban raised the issue during a meeting with shadow foreign minister Kerry MacCarthy.The meeting was apparently requested by Ecuador to discuss environmental issues and bilateral trade, and the Labour party were taken by surprise when the Australian’s case was raised towards the end of the meeting.Labour were quick to distance themselves from the issue, maintaining that Assange is not a policy issue until after the election.“The meeting was on the basis of a discussion about other issues and was one of a series of regular contact meetings with foreign governments in London,” a Labour source told the Guardian.The Ecuadorians have also been in discussions with the Swedish government about what is likely to happen to Assange once legal proceedings in Sweden are completed.The British home secretary would need to waive specialty, a legal term meaning a suspect can only be extradited to one country, under section 58 of the 2003 Extradition Act.Last September, Amnesty International said it believed that a US trial was playing a substantial role in the standoff, which has seen Assange effectively imprisoned in the tiny embassy for almost a year. It has said that a “forced transfer” to Sweden would be a “real risk of serious human rights violations.”The police operation mounted against Assange had cost the UK taxpayer 3 million pounds by February this year; a policeman is on constant guard in the lobby to arrest the Australian, should he attempt to make a run for it. … Read More
Ecuador in talks with UK’s Labour over Assange Sweden extradition
The Ecuadorian government has held talks with the British Labour party to try to strike a deal to send Assange to Sweden to end the political impasse, which has seen the Australian whistleblower holed up in the Ecuadorian embassy since claiming asylum in June last year. The Ecuadorians are setting their sights on a change of government after the 2015 UK election, having “lost all faith” in coming to an agreement with the current coalition. Assange faces rape allegations in Sweden, but has refused to be extradited there for questioning unless he receives assurances that he will not then be re-extradited to the US, where he reportedly faces trial for espionage over his work with WikiLeaks. Assange says he would travel to Sweden to prove his innocence if the US threat were lifted, but British Home Secretary Theresa May has rejected repeated calls to affirm she would refuse a US extradition request. Under Swedish law, Assange can only be formally charged in Sweden after being questioned by police first. Any deal with Labour would leave Assange with little choice but to surrender himself to Swedish authorities.“Ecuador wants to see the current situation resolved but has lost all faith in the current government’s willingness to do that. They have approached the Labour party in the hope of striking a deal for after the election. They do not believe that it is beneficial for Mr. Assange to be resident permanently in the London embassy,” a source told the Independent on Sunday.Quito has maintained that it wants Assange to go to Sweden to face the allegations, as long as there is no threat of extradition to the US. Ecuadorian ambassador Ana Alban raised the issue during a meeting with shadow foreign minister Kerry MacCarthy.The meeting was apparently requested by Ecuador to discuss environmental issues and bilateral trade, and the Labour party were taken by surprise when the Australian’s case was raised towards the end of the meeting.Labour were quick to distance themselves from the issue, maintaining that Assange is not a policy issue until after the election.“The meeting was on the basis of a discussion about other issues and was one of a series of regular contact meetings with foreign governments in London,” a Labour source told the Guardian.The Ecuadorians have also been in discussions with the Swedish government about what is likely to happen to Assange once legal proceedings in Sweden are completed.The British home secretary would need to waive specialty, a legal term meaning a suspect can only be extradited to one country, under section 58 of the 2003 Extradition Act.Last September, Amnesty International said it believed that a US trial was playing a substantial role in the standoff, which has seen Assange effectively imprisoned in the tiny embassy for almost a year. It has said that a “forced transfer” to Sweden would be a “real risk of serious human rights violations.”The police operation mounted against Assange had cost the UK taxpayer 3 million pounds by February this year; a policeman is on constant guard in the lobby to arrest the Australian, should he attempt to make a run for it. … Read More
Assange’s WikiLeaks Party opens for membership in Australia
The WikiLeaks party was created as part of Assange’s bid to become an Australian senator in September 2013 elections in Victoria State. At the moment the party has an initial 10-member national council, consisting of supporters and close associates of Assange and pro-WikiLeaks activists, but it also has to attract 500 fee-paying members required to be registered.The Twitter post calling on Australians to join the WikiLeaks party suggests its newly-created website is still being tested, although an online membership form is already available. Australian WikiLeaks Party now open for membership. Please test and comment ahead of our launch next week! wikileaksparty.org.au/forms/membersh… #wlparty — WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) March 30, 2013 Joining the WikiLeaks party founding crowd takes filling out at least 8 fields of personal information, mandatory for membership application, and also paying a $20 fee.The website also has the constitution of the WikiLeaks Party available online. Among its priorities it cites “the protection of human rights and freedoms; transparency of governmental and corporate action, policy and information; recognition of the need for equality between generations; and support of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander self-determination”.WikiLeaks announced its founder and leader Julian Assange was planning to run for a seat in the Australian Senate a year ago. He submitted his application to the Australian Electoral Commission and had his political party incorporated in Australia in February.The whistleblower is hoping that if he is elected, the US and Britain might stop their persecution of him for fear of diplomatic row. Assange has been holed up in the Ecuadoran embassy in London since June 2012, after claiming asylum in a bid to avoid extradition to Sweden, where he is wanted for questioning on sexual assault allegations.The founder of the whistleblowing website believes once in Sweden, he could then be extradited to the United States, where according to his lawyers he is likely to face trial and possibly even death penalty for the release of thousands of classified US diplomatic cables.If elected Australian Senator, Assange might still not be able to be physically present at the Australian senate as he might still be trapped in London’s Ecuadorean embassy. British authorities have vowed to detain him if he steps foot outside of the embassy in light of the European Arrest Warrant issued against him.Thus, Wikileaks founder does not rule out the possibility, that if he wins election and is unable to return to Australia, a WikiLeaks Party nominee could fill his seat in the Senate. … Read More
Bin Laden’s ‘right-hand man’ to stay in UK: British govt loses appeal
UK Home Secretary Theresa May had her appeal – filed against a ruling protecting the extremist cleric from deportation dismissed in the Court of Appeals.May’s legal team disputed the Court’s judgment, arguing Qatada was a “truly dangerous” individual who had evaded deportation because of “errors in the law.”As a consequence of the ruling, UK authorities will have to release the preacher from custody just two weeks after his arrest.The Metropolitan Police detained the cleric after they seized a large amount of extremist propaganda material when they raided Qatada’s north London home.The UK Home Office vowed that this was “not the end of the road,” and that they would work “to address the outstanding legal issues preventing Abu Qatada’s deportation.”The Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC) ruled last November that Qatada could not be returned to Jordan where he is a convicted terrorist because he could face and unfair trial based on evidence obtained through torture.The three judges presiding over the case said that although they recognized Qatada was a danger to British national security, SIAC’s legal principles were clear and well-established and had to be applied.“The fact that he is considered to be dangerous is not relevant to the application of these principles any more than it would be relevant if the issue was whether he should be deported to a country where he would be at risk of facing torture himself,” the appeal court ruling said.Qatada has fought his extradition to Jordan for over a decade, dashing attempts by six different home secretaries to remove him. There is a slim chance that Home Secretary May could take the case to the Supreme Court and attempt to overturn the ruling.The Islamist preacher was convicted in absentia on terror charges in April 1999, and was sentenced to life imprisonment in Jordan. If he were to return, he would face a retrial on these charges. SIAC believes that if a retrial were held, evidence obtained by the torture of Qatada’s two former codefendants, Abu Hawsher and Al-Hamasher, would be used against him.Edward Fitzgerald QC argued in favor of the SIAC ruling, maintaining there was”concrete and compelling evidence” that Qatada’s codefendants were tortured.The opposition to the ruling against his deportation has argued that a“fair” trial in Jordan could be guaranteed, and that the SIAC’s perception of the situation in Jordan is … Read More
