Extradition approved in abortion doctor murder case

A French court has recommended the extradition to the US of one of the FBI's most wanted fugitives.

James Charles Kopp, charged with the 1998 killing of a New York abortion doctor, has the right to appeal against the extradition.

The move needs the final approval of French Prime Minister Lionel Jospin.

Kopp, 46, ended two-and-a-half years on the run on March 29, when he was captured by French police in the western town of Dinan.

The Californian has denied shooting Dr Barnett Slepian as the doctor was making soup in his kitchen.

Entering the court before the hearing in front of a three-judge panel, Kopp said to reporters: "Who killed Dr. Slepian? That's the only question you should ask."

He faces a state murder charge carrying up to life in prison and the additional charge of violating the federal Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act. The federal charge can bring the death penalty.

The panel said it recommended the extradition only on condition that the death penalty will not be requested, pronounced or applied.

US Attorney General John Ashcroft has already said the United States will not seek the death penalty "in order to ensure that Kopp is not released from custody and is brought to justice in America".

Kopp, known as Atomic Dog in anti-abortion circles, is also wanted by Canadian authorities for allegedly wounding three doctors there.

Kopp's lawyers said they had not yet decided whether to appeal to the Court of Cassation, France's highest court.