Manning's max possible sentence cut to 90 years. FORT MEADE, Md. Army Pfc. Bradley Manning's possible sentence for disclosing classified information through WikiLeaks was trimmed from 136 years to 90 years Tuesday by a military judge who said some of his offenses were closely related. The ruling was largely a victory for defense attorneys, who had argued for an 80-year maximum. Still, the 25-year-old soldier could spend most, if not all, of his remaining years inside a prison at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. The sentencing phase of Manning's court-martial is in its second week. Manning says he leaked the material to expose wrongdoing by the military and U.S. diplomats. At his sentencing hearing, prosecutors are presenting evidence that the leaks damaged U.S. interests. Maj. The leaked cables publicly revealed a closer U.S. Adrian Lamo On The Stand: 'Did Manning Ever Say He Wanted To Help The Enemy?' 'Not In Those Words, No.'
Bradley Manning is currently on trial, charged with "aiding an enemy" (including "classified" enemies) for turning over sensitive documents to Wikileaks.
As Mike pointed out earlier, this latter charge doesn't add up. Manning never handed over anything directly to any enemies of America, classified or otherwise, and any documents these unnamed enemies had in their possession were already publicly available. Adrian Lamo, the ex-hacker who turned Manning over to the feds (or rather, the Dept. of Defense with some assistance from the FBI), was on the stand on June 4th. Under cross examination by David Coombs of Manning's defense team, Lamo is unable to say Manning intended to "aid the enemy" by releasing these documents. In fact, Coombs exchange with Lamo depicts Manning as someone with idealistic aims who hoped that bringing governmental and military wrongdoing into the light would help change both entities for the better.
Q. Q. Q. In what words, then? Judge refuses to dismiss charges in WikiLeaks case. Army PFC Bradley Manning is escorted by military police as he departs the… (Jim Watson / AFP/Getty Images ) FT.
MEADE, Md. -- A military judge refused Tuesday to dismiss the charges against the Army private accused of treason for providing reams of government secrets to WikiLeaks, saying numerous pretrial delays were necessary because of the “voluminous amount of classified information.” The ruling now clears the way for Pfc. Bradley Manning to appear in a military courtroom here Thursday and probably plead guilty to some of the lesser charges against him, including the unauthorized release of classified information, in return for about 20 years in prison.
But it would leave intact the most serious charge – treason – and other allegations that, if he is convicted after his trial begins in June, could mean the 25-year-old Iraq war veteran will spend the rest of his life in military prison at Ft. Manning was taken into custody in May 2010, and by Tuesday had spent 1,005 days in jail. WikiLeaks: Bradley Manning to defend himself as whistleblower in court. Bradley Manning Tried New York Times, Washington Post Before WikiLeaks. WikiLeaks: why has Bradley Manning turned down a jury trial? The day before that she decided Manning's right to a "speedy trial" within 120 days had not been violated, saying the government had reasonable excuses for taking more than 600 days to bring the case to court.
Her repeated strikes against his legal argument have provoked mutterings of conspiracy among Manning's supporters, some of whom believe the entire military justice system is rigged against him. So why then has the 25-year-old decided to literally put his life in her hands and allow Lind to decide whether or not he spends the rest of his days in prison? The answer may be that a tough judge is still a better option than a military jury picked from a pool of serving soldiers that widely considers Manning to be a traitor. I spoke to a couple of service personnel from different branches in the last few weeks and their verdict was the same: it was unconscionable for a soldier to violate his oath by knowingly leaking secret files into the public domain. Bradley Manning's Statement To Court Martial Leaked (AUDIO) WASHINGTON -- The Freedom of Press Foundation released audio late Monday of Pfc.
Bradley Manning's statement before a military court in Fort Meade, Md., in violation of court rules. The group released Manning's full statement, clocking in at one hour and eight minutes. The recording is the first the public has heard of Manning's voice since his arrest in May 2010. LISTEN to Manning's statement, per the Freedom of Press Foundation: Manning has admitted to leaking hundreds of thousands of classified documents to Wikileaks, as well as two videos of American airstrikes, in order to provoke a debate about U.S. foreign policy. "I am the type of person who always wants to figure out how things work," says Manning in the recording, "and as an analyst this always means I want to figure out the truth.
" Manning described one of the videos, titled "Collateral Murder," of a 2007 airstrike in Iraq, in which a helicopter fired on a group of men that included a Reuters employee and his driver. Audio of Manning testimony on WikiLeaks case released.