Bradley Manning Pleads Guilty To Lesser Charges in WikiLeaks Case
Pfc. Bradley Manning pled guilty to charges of sending classified documents to WikiLeaks but not to the bigger charge of espionage and aiding the enemy.
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According to the Huffington Post, while working as an intelligence analyst in Baghdad, Manning is said to have sent thousands of battlefield reports, State Department diplomatic cables, other classified reports and two battlefield videos to WikiLeaks in 2009 and 2010. Reuters is calling this the biggest leak of government secrets in U.S. History. The government says releasing the information threatened military and diplomatic sources and put America's relations with other countries at risk. WikiLeaks has never named Manning as the source of their information.
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The 25 year old read from a 35 page statement, as he pled guilty. The soldier said, "I believe that if the general public… had access to the information… this could spark a domestic debate as to the role of the military and foreign policy in general… I felt I accomplished something that would allow me to have a clear conscience."
A military lawyer said this to CNN about the Army private's plea:
"The tactic is known as a 'naked plea,' or a guilty plea in the absence of a plea deal.By using that strategy, the defense hopes the government will feel victorious about the guilty pleas Manning has entered and won't go through the effort of a trial.However, in previous hearings, the prosecution has said it intends to pursue convictions on the remaining charges."
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Manning has already spent over 1,000 days in jail. If convicted of the charges he pled guilty to, he could face a maximum prison sentence of 20 years. However if he is convicted of all the charges against him, he would face life imprisonment.
If the case continues, Manning has asked that the judge, not a jury, rule on the 12 charges to which he pled not guilty. Manning's court martial is set to begin June 3.
Read more of Neon Tommy's coverage of Bradley Manning here.
Read more of the Huffington Post's coverage of Bradley Manning here.
Read more of Reuter's coverage of Bradley Manning here.
Read more of CNN's coverage of Bradey Manning here.
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