Manning Guilty of Espionage, But Not Aiding the Enemy

July 30, 2013

A military judge in Maryland has found Army Private Bradley Manning guilty of espionage - but not aiding the enemy - by leaking hundreds of thousands of documents to the anti-secrecy website WikiLeaks. Manning could now get a life sentence, and the case sets a precedent on how the U.S. government is willing to deal with intelligence leaks in the Internet era.

After three years in custody that included time in solitary confinement, the verdict is in for Bradley Manning: guilty of espionage.

He was acquitted of the most serious charge: aiding the enemy. But the espionage conviction may still get him a maximum sentence of 136 years in prison.

Some of the leaked files were found in the hideout of Osama bin Laden.

Manning earlier pleaded guilty to what is being called the largest leak of secret U.S. documents in history: 700,000 files sent to WikiLeaks while he was deployed in Iraq. They included this video of a U.S. helicopter crew attacking civilians in Baghdad.

Those disclosures led civil libertarians to rally behind the 25-year-old intelligence analyst. On the morning of the verdict - as they did throughout the case - his supporters demonstrated outside Fort Meade.

“He represents the American desire for freedom of information, for democracy, where we hold our leaders accountable, for direct governance by the people," said Manning supporter Emma Cape.