WikiLeaks suspect Manning faces ruling on key charge

[Eugene]

Source: Agence France-Presse

WikiLeaks suspect Manning faces ruling on key charge

By Dan De Luce (AFP) – 59 minutes ago

FORT MEADE, Maryland — A US military judge will decide Thursday if WikiLeaks suspect Bradley Manning can be charged with "aiding the enemy" for allegedly leaking classified documents to the website.

Manning's lawyers asked the judge at pre-trial hearings this week to dismiss the most serious charge facing their client, arguing the government must drop the count unless it can prove the US Army private had "evil intent" to help Al-Qaeda when he allegedly passed files to WikiLeaks.

Otherwise, defense lawyers argue, the government's case implies any soldier could be prosecuted for the offense of "aiding the enemy" if they spilled secrets online or discussed sensitive information with news reporters.

Prosecutors counter that Manning's intent is not at issue and that the government only needed to prove that the intelligence analyst knew Al-Qaeda would see the leaked the information on the anti-secrecy WikiLeaks site.

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Read more: http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jLdtyS72n82ePtM3PT3YkuTP7irw?docId=CNG.4aa16c85ba823a4f548f5a5ce824884f.e1

[MADem]

1. Who talked to Geraldo when he started drawing maps in the sand? Git 'em!

They have enough to send Manning up the river for a long time even without that charge--I agree with the defense that they should drop it. There's no nexus between Manning and "the enemy." His view of himself was not as an enemy-aider, but as a whistleblower. That's pretty obvious from his convoluted conversations.