Intro: "The US Army soldier accused of handing over a trove of secret documents to the WikiLeaks website was subjected to harsh, 'unlawful' conditions for nine months at the brig even though psychiatrists concluded he was not at risk of committing suicide, said David Coombs, his defense counsel."

24-year-old Manning, who faces 22 charges, was held in solitary confinement from July 2010 to April 2011. (photo: Benjamin Myers/Reuters)

Lawyer: Treatment of Bradley Manning 'Should Shock the Court'

By Dan De Luce, Agence France-Presse

20 July 12

vidence showing the mistreatment of WikiLeaks suspect Bradley Manning at a military brig should "shock the conscience" of the court, his lawyer said Thursday.

The US Army soldier accused of handing over a trove of secret documents to the WikiLeaks website was subjected to harsh, "unlawful" conditions for nine months at the brig even though psychiatrists concluded he was not at risk of committing suicide, said David Coombs, his defense counsel.

Manning was placed under "maximum custody" at the US Marine Corps Brig in Quantico, Virginia as "the result of a direct order" from a commanding officer, witnessed by two colonels, Coombs alleged at a pre-trial hearing.

Other cases have revealed excesses but "this one should shock the conscience of this court," the lawyer added.

After his solitary confinement from July 2010 to April 2011, which sparked outrage by rights activists, Manning was transferred to a prison at Fort Leavenworth in Kansas, where he was placed under less restrictive conditions after he was evaluated by mental health professionals.

Judge Denise Lind agreed to a defense request to have the commander of the Fort Leavenworth brig at the time, Lieutenant Colonel Dawn Hilton, testify next month about how Manning was evaluated and why he was not placed in solitary confinement.

Manning's lawyer said he planned to file a 100-page motion arguing his client suffered illegal detention conditions while awaiting his court-martial, and said his improved treatment at Fort Leavenworth made clear that he had endured an injustice at the Quantico brig.

"Either the water at Fort Leavenworth has amazing mental health healing properties or he was subject to unlawful pre-trial confinement (at Quantico)," Coombs said.

But the judge rejected a request from Manning to have UN Special Rapporteur on Torture Juan Mendez appear as a witness. Prosecutors had argued that Mendez's testimony was not relevant as he never visited Manning during his detention at Quantico.

Mendez requested a visit with Manning but US military authorities would not allow him to conduct an "unmonitored" meeting with the accused, Coombs said.

The judge also ruled Thursday that prosecutors have to meet a defense request to produce in court a tear-proof smock, blanket and mattress similar to those issued to Manning during his detention at Quantico.

The blanket was essentially "a large piece of sand paper," Coombs said.

The trial for Manning is tentatively due to begin in September but may be pushed back as late as February next year, the judge said.

Manning, 24, was a low-ranking intelligence analyst deployed in Iraq when he was arrested in May 2010 and accused of releasing hundreds of thousands of classified diplomatic cables and military logs from Iraq and Afghanistan.

If convicted of aiding the enemy, he faces a possible life sentence.

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+41 # Trueblue Democrat 2012-07-20 07:55

I hope that Manning's defense team brings out very forcefully the injustice of Manning being prejudged by the Commander-in-Ch ief, one Barack Obama, who over a year ago pronounced Manning guilty.

+22 # Capn Canard 2012-07-20 11:36

America has become a parody of what it once was...

+28 # JetpackAngel 2012-07-20 12:35

The cat's out of the bag now. Arresting him was a knee-jerk "Oh, shit, they're releasing the secrets!" reaction. They're trying to make him an example but they're only making him a martyr, and each injustice they inflict upon him 'because they can' is another injustice the American people aren't going to like.

+6 # mdhome 2012-07-20 20:22

As far as I can tell most of those "secrets" never should have been classified as such and Manning did the American public a service and most of the stuff deserved to be told.

-2 # RobertMStahl 2012-07-21 08:23

I feel for Manning, this history of the Old Guard and psychology that is not in context, like that of Gregory Bateson's. I heard once by a journalist who moved to Dallas I believe it was, that the occupants of the city rooted for Goliath instead of David. What? Isaac Newton who was known to be in control of the beheading of tax evaders was heard to say, "I like this job." Still, James Clerk Maxwell and Isaac live in the same world (see GUT-CP)

+4 # neohip 2012-07-22 08:46

Bradley Manning is a hero to people who want their government to be held accountable for illegal behavior. There are too many examples of where our government lied to the people regarding Afghanistan and Iraq. This is a disgraceful period in America's history, one where Bradley Manning will be seen as a person who brought light to a dark reality. Our thoughts are with you Bradley.

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