They sure did:
"Manning ‘sorry’ for leaks, actions that hurt people" by Charlie Savage | New York Times, August 15, 2013
FORT MEADE, Md. — Private First Class Bradley Manning apologized Wednesday for leaking 700,000 government files to WikiLeaks, saying at the sentencing portion of his trial that while he “believed it was going to help people, not hurt people,” he now realized that it was wrong.
Pussy.
“I’m sorry,” Manning told the judge. “I’m sorry that my actions hurt people. I’m sorry that they hurt the United States. At the time of the decision, as you know, I was dealing with a lot of issues, issues that are ongoing.”
But while those issues — a reference to his crisis over his sexuality, which he was confronting while on a military deployment in a combat zone — have caused him considerable difficulties, he said, he was responsible for his actions.
What?
He also told the judge, Colonel Denise Lind, that he knew he had to pay a price but hoped that she would see him as a good person.
I did until the apology.
He said he hoped to someday get out of prison, earn a college degree, have a meaningful relationship with his family, and be a productive member of society.
Manning was convicted last month of violating the Espionage Act and several other charges. Although he was acquitted of “aiding the enemy,” he faces up to 90 years in prison.
Manning’s three-minute statement was not sworn, meaning that prosecutors could not cross-examine him.
It was a highlight of the final day of the sentencing phase of the trial in which the defense sought to portray him in human terms.
Several family members gave emotional testimony about Manning’s troubled childhood. Though he often showed little reaction to court proceedings during most of the 2½-month court martial, Manning appeared to struggle to contain his emotions several times Wednesday during testimony from his sister, an aunt, and two mental health counselors, one who treated him and another who diagnosed him with several problems.
The judge will impose the sentence, though exactly when is unclear.
The next session, for any prosecution rebuttal testimony, is set for Friday.
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"60 years sought in Bradley Manning leak case; Defense lawyer wants cap at 25" by David Dishneau | Associated Press, August 20, 2013
FORT MEADE, Md. — Defense attorney David Coombs said Army Private First Class Bradley Manning, who was 21 when he enlisted in 2007, had limited life and military experience. His youthful idealism contributed to his belief that he could change the way the world viewed the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and all future wars, by leaking the secret files, Coombs said.
That is why I started blogging so long ago -- and it appears we are finally having an effect.
‘‘He had pure intentions at the time that he committed his offenses,’’ Coombs said. ‘‘At that time, Pfc. Manning really, truly, genuinely believed that this information could make a difference.’’
That's why there is no advertising here. Just a concerned and conscientious citizen trying to do his part.
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The 25-year-old native of Crescent, Okla., leaked more than 700,000 documents, including Iraq and Afghanistan battlefield reports and State Department diplomatic cables, while working in early 2010 as an intelligence analyst in Iraq. He also leaked video of a 2007 US Apache helicopter attack in Baghdad that killed at least nine people, including a Reuters news photographer and his driver.
I think the kid is a scapegoat for the Israeli intelligence blackmail operation that is Wikileaks, although they hardly needed it (NYT doesn't think that is an important story?).
Family members and a psychologist testified for the defense, saying the soldier felt extreme mental pressure in the military because of his gender-identity disorder during the ‘‘don’t ask, don’t tell’’ era.
Why did he/she enlist in the first place then? Masochistic?
Coombs presented evidence that Manning’s unit needed intelligence analysts so badly that a supervisor failed to report to commanders his concerns about Manning’s deteriorating mental health. Such a report could have prevented Manning from being deployed or resulted in his top-secret security clearance being revoked.
Or not: Navy Yard Shooting Proves Failure of NSA
What a waste of money all these years, huh?
Coombs cited an incident in May 2010, when then-Master Sergeant Paul Adkins found Manning rocking in a fetal position on the floor in their workplace in Iraq. Manning had carved the words, ‘‘I want’’ into the vinyl part of a chair. Adkins testified he talked to Manning for about an hour until the soldier was calm, and then sent him back to work.
Coombs said Adkins should have escorted Manning directly to the unit’s behavioral health office.
‘‘The failure, the utter failure to take any action at that point is inexcusable,’’ Coombs said.
Morrow said there were other people in Manning’s unit who were openly gay and Manning did not hide his sexuality from them.
‘‘It wasn’t the military’s fault, it wasn’t the command’s fault, it wasn’t because he saw something horrible — it was because he had an agenda,’’ Morrow said.
One Manning supporter in the court room bit her lip and shook her head in disapproval at Morrow’s comments. Two others frowned.
Prosecutors have called Manning an anarchist computer hacker and attention-seeking traitor. The soldier’s supporters have hailed Manning as a whistleblower.
Prosecutors also asked the judge to fine Manning $100,000, reduce his rank to private and give him a dishonorable discharge.
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"Manning could get up to 90 years at sentencing; Likely to serve at least a third of eventual term" by Emmarie Huetteman | New York Times, August 21, 2013
WASHINGTON — Private First Class Bradley Manning will be sentenced Wednesday morning for providing more than 700,000 secret government documents to WikiLeaks, the largest leak of confidential materials in American history, the judge announced Tuesday, just hours after beginning deliberations.
Manning, 25, faces up to 90 years in prison, although he will be credited for the 3½ years he has already spent in custody. The judge, Colonel Denise R. Lind, convicted Manning in July of most of the charges, including six counts of violating the Espionage Act of 1917.
The sentencing is scheduled for 10 a.m., and the hearing is expected to be brief. Lind will announce Manning’s full sentence before adjourning the court martial, a legal specialist said. She will not break down the sentence by charge or explain her reasoning, and Manning will not make a statement, the specialist said.
Manning’s sentence will automatically be sent to the Army Court of Criminal Appeals, unless he unexpectedly decides to waive that right.
On Monday, Manning named one of his lawyers, David E. Coombs, to work with him on the clemency process, through which he could seek a reduction of his sentence. Most likely, he must serve one-third of his sentence before he becomes eligible for parole, the legal specialist said.
It took just under an hour and a half for both sides to make their closing arguments on Monday.
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Prosecutors have made it clear that their intention was not only to punish Manning but also to discourage others from leaking information.
As the Manning case moved forward, Edward J. Snowden, the former government contractor, caused a furor by disclosing classified documents about the National Security Agency’s surveillance efforts. In June, Snowden became the seventh person to be charged under the Obama administration with leaking classified information to the news media.
Edward Snowden is a 21st-century hero and the world owes him an unpayable debt of gratitude. He wasn't going to be made an example.
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"Manning gets 35 years for leaking government secrets" by Charlie Savage and Emmarie Huetteman | New York Times, August 22, 2013
FORT MEADE, Md. — A military judge sentenced Private First Class Bradley Manning on Wednesday to 35 years in prison for providing more than 700,000 government files to WikiLeaks, a leak that lifted the veil on US military and diplomatic activities around the world.
I guess he got off easy.
The sentence is the longest handed down in a case involving a leak of US government information for the purpose of having the information reported to the public. Manning, 25, will be eligible for parole in about seven years, his lawyer said.
Yeah, how dare we, the public paying for all this, should know what this government is up to.
In a two-minute hearing Wednesday morning, the judge, Army Colonel Denise R. Lind, also said Manning would be dishonorably discharged and reduced in rank from private first class to private, the lowest rank in the military. She said he would forfeit his pay, but she did not impose a fine.
Before the sentencing, Manning sat, leaning forward, with his hands folded, whispering to his lawyer, David Coombs. His aunt and a cousin sat behind him. When Lind read the sentence, Manning stood, showing no expression.
The materials that Manning gave to WikiLeaks included a video taken during a US helicopter attack in Baghdad in 2007 in which civilians were killed, including two journalists. He also gave WikiLeaks some 250,000 diplomatic cables; dossiers of detainees being imprisoned without trial at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba; and hundreds of thousands of incident reports from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Immediately after the judge left, military guards flanked Manning and hustled him out of the courtroom as a half-dozen supporters shouted words of encouragement at him.
“We’ll keep fighting for you, Bradley,” one shouted. Another said, “You are a hero.” After Manning left the room, another supporter yelled, “We love you.”
That's nice.
Several hours after the sentencing, Coombs told reporters that he would apply for a presidential pardon for Manning next week.
Good luck with that. If they wanted to pardon you they would not have prosecuted.
At the White House, Josh Earnest, a spokesman, responded that Manning’s application would be considered “like any other application.”
The leaks make Obomber furious, so I wouldn't get your hopes up.
Coombs said that he wept after hearing Manning’s sentence and recounted how Manning comforted him as they left the courtroom.
“He looks at me, and he says, ‘It’s OK,’ ” Coombs said. “He is a resilient young man. If nothing else, he is resilient.”
Manning downloaded the materials from a classified computer network to which he had access as a low-level Army intelligence analyst while deployed in Iraq in 2010. The documents he gave to WikiLeaks set off a scramble inside the government as officials sought to minimize any harm, including protecting foreign nationals identified in some documents as having helped US diplomats or the military. No evidence has emerged that anyone was killed because of the leaks.
Translation: no U.S. spies were exposed.
Among other things, the files also exposed the abuse of detainees by Iraqi officers under the watch of US forces and showed that civilian deaths during the Iraq War were most likely significantly higher than official estimates.
Why weren't those things hammered home by my jewsmedia? The first leak they reported was Iran has a bomb.
“It’s outrageous,” one supporter who had been in the courtroom, Laura Watkins, 63, of Alexandria, Va., said of the sentence. “What I’ve seen is a travesty of justice.”
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Steven Aftergood, a government secrecy specialist with the Federation of American Scientists, said Manning’s 35-year sentence reflected how much his case differed from what had come before it.
“This is by far the longest sentence in a leak case,” he said. “It reflects the gravity of the case and the government’s perception of the damage that was done. Among other things, it is also the most voluminous leak ever, and also the broadest in scope including diplomatic, military and other records. So it was a qualitatively new kind of leak, and the government responded aggressively.”
Lind could have sentenced Manning to up to 90 years....
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"Convicted Army private reveals gender identity; Manning’s lawyer says they will seek hormone therapy" by Emmarie Huetteman and Brian Stelter | New York Times, August 23, 2013
WASHINGTON — One day after being sentenced to 35 years in prison, the Army private first class who was convicted of leaking vast archives of secret government files to WikiLeaks said in a statement Thursday, “I want everyone to know the real me. I am Chelsea Manning. I am a female.”
Manning’s defense lawyer, David E. Coombs, appeared on the “Today” show, where the statement was read, saying the private, whose given name was Bradley Manning, had felt female since childhood, a fact that was discussed during the court-martial.
So he, 'er, she joined the Army? And don't forget, this guy, 'er, gal was tortured while in solitary confinement. Who knows what drugs they had her on.
“As I transition into this next phase of my life, I want everyone to know the real me,” the statement said. “I am Chelsea Manning. I am a female. Given the way that I feel, and have felt since childhood, I want to begin hormone therapy as soon as possible. I hope that you will support me in this transition.”
Okay.
The statement went on to request that people “refer to me by my new name and use the feminine pronoun (except in official mail to the confinement facility).” It was signed, “Chelsea Manning.”
I'm just gonna skip it.
Coombs said Manning had waited to speak publicly about gender identity until after sentencing.
Manning’s revelation raises questions of how the Army prison at Fort Leavenworth, Kan., where Manning will be held, will respond. A spokeswoman for the prison recently told Courthouse News that the prison did not provide hormone therapy or gender-reassignment surgery. As is the case for all soldiers, transgender inmates are only eligible for psychiatric care, she said.
Coombs acknowledged as much on “Today.” He said that his client had not signaled an interest in gender-reassignment surgery, but that they were hopeful that Fort Leavenworth would “do the right thing” and provide hormone therapy. Such therapeutic regimens can help people with male physical features turn those features more feminine.
Coombs said that if the military did not provide hormone therapy willingly, “then I’m going to do everything in my power to make sure they are forced to do so.”
When asked whether Manning’s goal was to be housed in prison with women, instead of men, Coombs said, “No, I think the ultimate goal is to be comfortable in her skin and to be the person that she’s never had an opportunity to be.”
Defense lawyers raised the fact that Manning is transgender during the sentencing phase of the court-martial, describing the emotional stress Manning endured while deployed in Iraq.
I'm still wonder why she enlisted in the Army of all things.
Two psychiatrists testified about treating Manning for “gender identity disorder.” The psychiatrists said that handling such a diagnosis in a combat zone, and at time when it was still against military law to be openly gay, would have put Manning under immense pressure.
According to testimony, Manning e-mailed a photo of himself dressed in a blond wig and makeup to a supervisor during his deployment.
??
In the e-mail, which had the title “My Problem,” Manning described a struggle with something that “makes my entire life feel like a bad dream that won’t end.”
It is now.
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Gee, you know, I forgot all about what he/she leaked.
"Chelsea Manning seeks presidential pardon" by David Dishneau | Associated Press, September 05, 2013
HAGERSTOWN, Md. — Chelsea Manning is seeking a presidential pardon for sending reams of classified information to WikiLeaks, a leak she says was done ‘‘out of a love for my country and sense of duty to others,’’ according to documents released Wednesday.
But you're sorry?
Manning’s lawyer, David Coombs, sent the Petition for Pardon/Commutation of Sentence on Tuesday to President Obama through the Justice Department, and to Army Secretary John M. McHugh.
The White House said last month that a Manning request for a presidential pardon would be considered like any other.
Manning, formerly Bradley Manning, is serving a 35-year sentence at Fort Leavenworth, Kan., for her conviction July 30 on 20 counts for disclosing the information while working as an intelligence analyst in Iraq in 2010. Manning has said she wants to live as a woman and receive hormone therapy for gender dysphoria — the sense that she is physically the wrong gender.
The leak of hundreds of thousands of battlefield reports, diplomatic cables, and a video of a US helicopter attack that killed civilians was the largest-volume leak of classified material in US history.
And so little of it has been reported in my newspaper.
Manning got the longest sentence ever for disclosing US government secrets to others for publication.
The Obama administration has cracked down on security breaches, charging seven people with leaking information to the media. Only three were prosecuted under all previous presidents combined.
Not enough.
Mark Osler, a law professor and founder of a commutation clinic at St. Thomas University in Minneapolis, gave Manning’s petition a ‘‘zero percent’’ chance of success, given the relatively low number of pardons granted by Obama. The president has granted 39 pardons and one commutation since taking office, and denied 1,333. That’s a lower rate than any recent predecessors, Osler said.
He really turned out to be a shit president compared to his campaign rhetoric.
It’s also very early in Manning’s confinement for the White House to seriously consider such a request, Osler said. Pardon applicants ordinarily must wait five years after their release to be eligible for consideration. Those seeking to have their prison sentence commuted to time served generally must show they were over-sentenced or that they underwent extraordinary rehabilitation in prison, Osler said.
Pardon applicants can request a waiver of the five-year waiting period, according to the federal Office of the Pardon Attorney at the Justice Department. Manning’s application does not mention a waiver. Coombs said in an e-mailed response that a waiver request is implicit in the filing.
Manning signed the petition with her legal name, ‘‘Bradley Manning,’’ not Chelsea. Coombs has said anything having to do with the pardon or court-martial would have to be in Bradley’s name. Officials at Fort Leavenworth say Manning would have to get a legal name change to be known as Chelsea.
Manning wrote in the petition that she started questioning the morality of US actions in Iraq and Afghanistan while reading secret military reports on a daily basis in Iraq.
I questioned it before we even went in.
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At Manning’s trial, government witnesses testified that some of the leaked information endangered information sources, forced ambassadors to be reassigned, were used as Al Qaeda propaganda, and was even obtained directly by Osama bin Laden.
Yeah, we get a lot of that, too. It's called a newspaper.
See:
Six Zionist Companies Own 96% of the World's Media
Declassified: Massive Israeli manipulation of US media exposed
Operation Mockingbird
Why Am I No Longer Reading the Newspaper?
And how a dead guy obtained the stuff is a mystery.
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Also among the documents was a letter from Amnesty International, which said Manning’s leaks exposed potential human rights violations.
Then he, sorry, she should be applauded.
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