WikiLeaks suspect Bradley Manning cleared to stand trial

By: David Martin
Topics: National Security

Army Pfc. Bradley Manning

(Credit: AP/Grpahics Bank)

To nobody's surprise, the Army has declared Pfc. Bradley Manning mentally competent to stand trial on a host of charges stemming from his alleged leaking of government secrets to WikiLeaks.

The lengthy process of reaching that conclusion is what kept Manning, 22, in near solitary confinement in the Marine brig at Quantico since last July. That brig is not a pre-trial confinement facility. It's a place where convicted criminals do hard time. But Manning was sent there in order to keep him in the Washington area, available to Army psychiatrists who would judge his competence to stand trial.

It took nine months for the psychiatrists to judge him mentally fit, mostly because it took months and months to grant them the security clearances necessary to be read in on a case involving half a million secret documents. The conditions of Manning's confinement at the Quantico brig were made worse by the fact that there had been a suicide there the year before, and his jailors weren't taking any chances, even though psychiatrists did not consider him a risk to take his life.

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So now Manning is out of solitary and living with other inmates in a very different place -a modern, medium-security facility at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. He is likely to be there a long time before his case ever comes to trial. The same sort of problems involving classified documents and security clearances that slowed his psychiatric evaluation will also delay his trial.

And that's not including the Department of Justice's attempts to build a case against Julian Assange and Wikileaks. Manning would obviously be key to any prosecution of Assange, and the government almost surely would not want to give anything away by bringing Manning to trial before it finished trying to build a case against WikiLeak's co-founder.

David Martin
David Martin is CBS News' National Security Correspondent.

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by BruceLeier May 30, 2011 4:38 PM EDT: Bradley Manning is a hero who desearves to be memorialized this Memorial Day. I have and will continue to support those who are blowing the whistle on our country's misdeeds.; Reply to this comment


by RaoulDuke2 May 30, 2011 2:15 PM EDT: First they came for the communists,
and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a communist.

Then they came for the trade unionists,
and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a trade unionist.

Then they came for the Jews,
and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a Jew.

Then they came for me
and there was no one left to speak out for me.

Regardless of a crime someone is suspected of. Bradley deserves to be treated with respect and integrity. If any of you ever find yourselves suspected of a crime remember the statement above and pray for your selves; Reply to this comment


by reluctantzealot May 1, 2011 11:20 AM EDT: Why you should not want government ruling your life... "
It took nine months for the psychiatrists to judge him mentally fit, mostly because it took months and months to grant them the security clearances necessary to be read in on a case involving half a million secret documents"

It took nine monts to get them clearance to read what is readily available to the rest of the world on wiki leaks....

These are the same people that want to tell me what to eat, where to live and control my health care.

sigh....

and yet there are many who don't see the problem.; Reply to this comment


by js555554 April 30, 2011 8:21 AM EDT: Finally. When will the trial start and will they be selling tickets to the execution?; Reply to this comment

by AnnieDanny April 30, 2011 2:43 AM EDT

I hope he can provide info to help the case against Assange. This kid did some really dumb things apparently, but it's Assange that I consider to be especially repulsive and malicious and dangerous. I can't understand why anyone would consider Assange (or his employees) as heroes: he's just disgusting.

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by 010sonny April 30, 2011 6:17 PM EDT: Annie I can see why you would consider the expose' of elitist maneuvers as repulsive and malicious. Because they are! History has shown that in this country of open government. Whistleblowers are targeted and imprisoned, ridiculed, intimidated and or terminated. Seldom rewarded for seeking to right a wrong. For we are above all that. Are you related to Monsanto?


by jgg000101 April 29, 2011 10:20 PM EDT: bradley will be bent over many times before he stands trial.; Reply to this comment

by longtree-2009 April 29, 2011 7:13 PM EDT

isn't the soldier from california, land of the liberals? that aside, he is a traitor and should be shot by firing squad for his crime during time of war. to some, the man is a hero to those of us who have served he is a traitor. execute him by firing squad.

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by 010sonny April 30, 2011 6:22 PM EDT: DUUUH what WAR? That's just right wing propaganda. There is no war...

by dogsoul April 29, 2011 5:00 PM EDT

...listen to the liberals defending the traitor.

Liberals - aiding America's enemies since 1952

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by retm-w April 29, 2011 7:25 PM EDT: Look at the right wingers wanting to hang the guy before he has a trial.


by Prisoner_223 April 29, 2011 8:31 PM EDT: Hey retm-w, don't worry, he'll get his trial. Though all it serves to do is delay the .30-30 round from exploding his heart.

Before you decide to commit treason you should first think about getting strapped to a chair with a target taped over your heart, looking down the barrels of five deer rifles. Bradley boy here didn't think the consequences of his actions though. All he thought about was:

Step 1: Get in fight.
Step 2: Get demoted.
Step 3: Commit treason in retaliation.
Step 4: ???

Whats Step 4 again? Oh, right: Get executed.


by LyleWy April 29, 2011 3:29 PM EDT: The accused should be set free as they are supposed to have a speedy trial for everyone. They want to punish him for something they can't find him guilty of in the first place. If not then why do they need another year to set trial. What a joke!!!; Reply to this comment


by LyleWy April 29, 2011 3:29 PM EDT: The accused should be set free as they are supposed to have a speedy trial for everyone. They want to punish him for something they can't find him guilty of in the first place. If not then why do they need another year to set trial. What a joke!!!; Reply to this comment