Manning pleading guilty to some charges earlier this year. Art by Clark Stoeckley, via VICE
Bradley Manning’s verdict is in: the 25-year-old former military intelligence analyst has been found guilty of 19 of the 22 charges levied against him by the US government, including six charges of violating the Espionage Act. The good news is that he is not guilty of the most serious charge of “aiding the enemy,” but the charges he was convicted of carry a total maximum sentence of over 100 years.
Manning’s charge of “aiding the enemy” was a serious worry to journalists, as various critics—including lawyer and Harvard faculty member Yochai Benkler, who testified at Manning’s trial this month—described the charge as criminalizing, or at the very least, threatening journalism and whistleblowing.
Last Monday, the prosecution confirmed it wouldn’t have made a difference if the leaks were published in the Washington Post or the New York Times. That means that if Manning was found guilty of “aiding the enemy," the ruling could have had a massive chilling effect on whistleblowing, especially in the military. It would have been a key precedent that leaks, even to respected journalistic outlets, could be considered treason if the military or government deemed that info as key intelligence.
The “aiding the enemy” charge was a point of contention in this case, as historically, the charge “had to do with POWs who gave information to the Japanese during World War II, or to Chinese communists during Korea, or during the Vietnam War," said Duke law school professor and former Air Force judge advocate Scott Silliman to the Associated Press. Manning’s verdict would have set a precedent as Manning didn’t directly give information to the enemy.
As for the rest of the lesser charges, which include six counts of violating the Espionage Act, Manning was found guilty of “wanton publication of intelligence on the internet,” computer fraud, and “embezzlement of government property offenses.”
The two-month trial which drew to a close last Thursday saw the prosecution working hard to prove Manning was a fame-seeker and characterized him as a traitor with “general evil intent,” while Manning’s lawyers sought to paint him as a “principled activist” with a conscience who “just wanted to help his country.”
Sentencing will take place tomorrow, where new evidence can be issued. Both sentence and verdict will be reviewed and possibly reduced by the Military District of Washington commander Maj. Gen. Jeffery S. Buchanan if he deems such action necessary. The time Manning's already served count towards his sentence. Manning’s defenders also have the option of the US Army Court of Criminal Appeals in the future.
If you're in need of a refresher of how Manning got here, in early 2010, Manning—who was working as an intelligence analyst for the military—gave WikiLeaks 750,000 cables and army reports which included documentation of Guantanamo Bay, the continued torture at Abu Ghraib, the Iraqi war civilian death toll, and the now infamous Collateral Murder video depicting American soldiers shooting civilians, children, and journalists from a helicopter.
Manning said in court that he tried to give the same information to the Washington Post and the New York Times, but they never responded. WikiLeaks published the video in April 2010, and a month later a hacker friend Adrian Lamo tipped off authorities and Manning was arrested. Manning spent three years in jail, 11 months of which was spent in solitary confinement under conditions the UN deemed torture, before being given trial in a military court.