LONDON – Colorado mother Kimberly Singler, accused of taking drugs and killing her two children before fleeing to Britain, has been told by a British court that she must be sent home for trial. Can be sent back.
Singler looked silent and emotionless during a brief hearing at Westminster Magistrates’ Court in central London on Friday, where District Judge John Zanni rejected his challenge to the US extradition order.
However, the case will now be considered by the British secretary, Yvette Cooper, who has the final say on some high-profile extradition cases.
And Singler plans to appeal the decision to the British Supreme Court and then possibly to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg, France. He faces life in prison on a successful conviction.
Singler, 36, died in London on Dec. 30, 2023, after the lifeless bodies of her children, ages 7 and 9, were found at her Colorado Springs home.
He is accused of fatally shooting and stabbing them, as well as injuring a third child who survived and told police about his ordeal, and is charged with seven counts of absenteeism. Charged, including two counts of first-degree murder.
Singler’s legal team was resisting extradition on the grounds that she denies the charges and faces a life sentence with no possibility of parole, which is a violation of European human rights law. Accordingly, such a thing is considered cruel and unusual punishment.
Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights – the legally binding law followed by 46 countries, including the UK – prohibits “inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment”.
But in a written decision, Zani said he was satisfied his extradition would be lawful because there was “a working review mechanism in the form of executive clearance,” meaning that, although highly unlikely, Colorado The Governor may choose to pardon. His
The judge said he was of the firm opinion that the defendant’s extradition to the United States to face criminal prosecution “is consistent with his constitutional rights. Singler has 14 days in which to file an appeal.” .
Westminster Magistrates’ Court has heard graphic details of his alleged crimes in a series of hearings over the past year, with Singler’s lawyer highlighting the legality of his extradition with a lawyer for the UK government.
Singler’s attorney, Edward Fitzgerald, said she is “coping very well” in jail, where she remains for the time being served.
