Bradley Manning charged with 22 crimes including capital offense ‘Aiding the Enemy’

Faces 22 additional charges, including capitol offense for aiding the enemy

Statements by Manning’s lawyer and by WikiLeaks follows this Wired report. ~Ed.

By Kim Zetter
Wired

The Army has filed 22 new charges against suspected WikiLeaks source Bradley Manning, among them a capital offense for which the government said it would not seek the death penalty. The charges, filed Tuesday but disclosed only Wednesday, include aiding the enemy, theft of public property or records, computer fraud, transmitting defense information and wrongfully causing intelligence to be published on the internet knowing it would be accessible to the enemy. The aiding the enemy charge is a capital offense which potentially carries the death penalty.

“The new charges more accurately reflect the broad scope of the crimes that Pvt. 1st Class Manning is accused of committing,” spokesman Capt. John Haberland said in a statement.

According to the Army, the prosecution team will not seek the death penalty for the capital offense. But under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, the presiding judge ultimately decides what charges to refer to court-martial and whether to impose the death penalty.

Manning was arrested last May after he told a former hacker that he passed thousands of classified and sensitive documents to WikiLeaks. He has been in custody at the Marine Corps brig in Quantico, Virginia, awaiting a mental-health hearing requested by his attorney. Depending on the result, the case could then proceed to an Article 32 hearing — the military equivalent of a grand jury investigation.

Though WikiLeaks is not named in the charges, the details of what Manning allegedly accessed or transmitted largely match up with WikiLeaks leaks over the past 10 months. Charge II, Specification 2 charges him with leaking a classified video titled “12 JUL 07 CZ ENGAGEMENT ZONE 30 GC Anyone-avi” on or before April 5, 2010, the day WikiLeaks published an Army video of a July 12, 2007 Army helicopter attack in Iraq that killed innocent people.

WikiLeaks released the [above] video of a 2007 Apache helicopter attack in Iraq under the title “Collateral Murder.”

U.S. Soldier Ethan McCord’s Eyewitness Story

Specification 4 in the same charge describes a “Combined Information Data Network Exchange Iraq database containing more than 380,000 records.” On October 22, WikiLeaks released a largely-classified Army database of events in the Iraq war with 392,000 entries. A similar Afgan database with over 90,000 events, partially published by WikiLeaks on July 25, is described in Specification 6.

Specification 8 describes “a United States Southern Command database containing more than 700 records” — likely a reference to the records of over 700 Guantánamo Bay detainees that WikiLeaks reportedly received, but has not published. Specification 12 accuses Manning of stealing over 250,000 State Department diplomatic cables from the Net-Centric Diplomacy database — a clear reference to the WikiLeaks “Cablegate” material.

At least one of the charged leaks has neither been acknowledge by WikiLeaks, nor was mentioned by Bradley Manning in his online chats with Adrian Lamo — the ex-hacker who ultimately turned him in to the Army and FBI. That’s a “United States Forces -Iraq Microsoft Outlook / SharePoint Exchange Server global address list belonging to the United States government.” The government has acknowledged that it conducted forensic examinations of Manning’s computer following his arrest, but has not said whether evidence was recovered.

The capital offense charge of aiding the enemy is a purely military charge from the Uniform Code of Military Justice, which applies only to service members. But the specter of a capital offence will likely be seized upon by lawyers for WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, who have claimed that Assange’s pending extradition to Sweden in a rape and molestation investigation there could somehow lead to him being shipped to the U.S., where some politicians have called for Assange to be charged with a capital offense for publishing U.S. leaks.

If convicted of all charges, Manning would face a life sentence in prison, assuming the convening authority takes the death penalty off the table. Before the latest charges, the maximum potential jail time he had faced was 52 years.

The full charges and specifications, from the charge sheet (.pdf), follow, with the allegedly leaked or accessed material in bold.

ADDITIONAL CHARGE I: VIOLATION OF THE UCMJ. ARTICLE 104.

THE SPECIFICATION: In that Private First Bradley E. Manning, U.S. Army, did, at or near Contingency Operating Station Hammer, Iraq, between on or about 1 November 2009 and on or about 27 May 2010, without proper authority, knowingly give intelligence to the enemy, through indirect means.

ADDITIONAL CHARGE II: VIOLATION OF THE UCMJ, ARTICLE 134.

SPECIFICATION 1: In that Private First Class Bradley E. Manning, U.S. Army, did, at or near Contingency Operating Station Hammer, Iraq, between on or about 1 November 2009 and on or about 27 May 2010, wrongfully and wantonly cause to be published on the internet intelligence belonging to the United States government, having knowledge that intelligence published on the internet is accessible to the enemy, such conduct being prejudicial to good order and discipline in the armed forces and being of a nature to bring discredit upon the armed forces.

SPECIFICATION 2: In that Private First Class Bradley E. Manning, U.S. Army, did, at or near Contingency Operating Station Hammer, Iraq, between on or about 15 February 2010 and on or about 5 April 2010, having unauthorized possession of information relating to the national defense, to wit: a video file named “12 JUL 07 CZ ENGAGEMENT ZONE 30 GC Anyone-avi“, with reason to believe such information could be used to the injury of the United States or to the advantage of any foreign nation, willfully communicate, deliver, transmit, or cause to be communicated, delivered, or transmitted, the said information, to a person not entitled to receive it, in violation of 18 U.S. Code Section 793 (e), such conduct being prejudicial to good order and discipline in the armed forces and being of a nature to bring discredit upon the armed forces.

SPECIFICATION 3: In that Private First Class Bradley E. Manning, U.S. Amy, did, at or near Contingency Operating Station Hammer, Iraq, between on or about 22 March 2010 and on or about 26 March 2010, having unauthorized possession of information relating to the national defense, to wit: more than one classified memorandum produced by a United States government intelligence agency, with reason to believe such information could be used to the injury of the United States or to the advantage of any foreign nation, willfully communicate, deliver, transmit, or cause to be communicated, delivered, or transmitted, the said information, to a person not entitled to receive it, in violation of 18 U.S. Code Section 793(e), such conduct being prejudicial to good order and discipline in the armed forces and being of a nature to bring discredit upon the armed forces.

SPECIFICATION 4: In that Private First Class Bradley E. Manning, U.S. Army, did, at or near Contingency Operating Station Hammer, Iraq, between on or about 31 December 2009 and on or about 5 January 2010, steal, purloin, or knowingly convert to his use or the use of another, a record or thing of value of the United States or of a department or agency thereof, to wit: the Combined Information Data Network Exchange Iraq database containing more than 380,000 records belonging to the United States government, of a value of more than $1,000, in violation of 18 U.S. Code Section 641, such conduct being prejudicial to good order and discipline in the armed forces and being of a nature to bring discredit upon the armed forces.

SPECIFICATION 5: In that Private First Class Bradley E. Manning, U.S. Army, did, at or near Contingency Operating Station Hammer, Iraq, between on or about 31 December 2009 and on or about 9 February 2010, having unauthorized possession of information relating to the national defense, to wit: more than twenty classified records from the Combined Information Data Network Exchange Iraq database, with reason to believe such information could be used to the injury of the United States or to the advantage of any foreign nation, willfully communicate, deliver, transmit, or cause to be communicated, delivered, or transmitted, the said information, to a person not entitled to receive it, in violation of 18 U.S. Code Section 793(e), such conduct being prejudicial to good order and discipline in the armed forces and being of a nature to bring discredit upon the armed forces.

SPECIFICATION 6: In that Private First Class Bradley E. Manning, U.S. Army, did, at or near Contingency Operating Station Hammer, Iraq, between on or about 31 December 2009 and on or about 8 January 2010, steal, purloin, or knowingly convert to his use or the use a£ another, a record or thing of value of the United States or of a department or agency thereof, to wit: the Combined Information Data Network Exchange Afghanistan database containing more than 90,000 records belonging to the United States government, of a value of more than $1,000, in violation of 18 U.S. Code Section 641, such conduct being prejudicial to good order and discipline in the armed forces and being of a nature to bring discredit upon the armed forces.

SPECIFICATION 7: In that Private First Class Bradley E. Manning, U.S. Army, did, at or near Contingency Operating Station Hammer, Iraq, between on or about 31 December 2009 and on or about 9 February 2010, having unauthorized possession of information relating to the national defense, to wit: more than twenty classified records from the Combined Information Data Network Exchange Afghanistan database, with reason to believe such information could be used to the injury of the United States or to the advantage of any foreign nation, willfully communicate, deliver, transmit, or cause to be communicated, delivered, or transmitted, the said information, to a person not entitled to receive it, in violation of 18 U.S. Code Section 793(e), such conduct being prejudicial to good order and discipline in the armed forces and being of a nature to bring discredit upon the armed forces.

SPECIFICATION 8: In that Private First Class Bradley E. Planning, U.S. Army, did, at or near Contingency Operating Station Hammer, Iraq, on or about 8 March 2010, steal, purloin, or knowingly convert to his use or the use of another, a record or thing of value of the united States or of a department or agency thereof, to wit: a United States Southern Command database containing more than 700 records belonging to the United States government, of a value of more than $1,000, in violation of 18 U.S. Code Section 641, such conduct being prejudicial to good order and discipline in the armed forces and being of a nature to bring discredit upon the armed forces.

SPECIFICATION 9: In that Private First Class Bradley E. Manning, U.S. Army, did, at or near Contingency Operating Station Hammer, Iraq, between on or about 8 March 2010 and on or about 27 May 2010, having unauthorized possession of information relating to the national defense, to wit: more than three classified records from a United States Southern Command database, with reason to believe such information could be used to the injury of the United States or to the advantage of any foreign nation, willfully communicate, deliver, transmit, or cause to be communicated, delivered, or transmitted, the said information, to a person not entitled to receive it, in violation of 18 U.S. Code Section 793(e), such conduct being prejudicial to good order and discipline in the armed forces and being of a nature to bring discredit upon the armed forces.

SPECIFICATION 10: In that Private First Class Bradley E. Manning, U-S. Army, did, at or near Contingency Operating Station Hammer, Iraq, between on or about II April 2010 and on or about 27 May 2010, having unauthorized possession of information relating to the national defense, to wit: more than five classified records relating to a military operation in Farah Province, Afghanistan occurring on or about 4 May 2009, with reason to believe such information could be used to the injury of the United States or to the advantage of any foreign nation, willfully communicate, deliver, transmit, or cause to be communicated, delivered, or transmitted, the said information, to a person not entitled to receive it, in violation of 18 U.S. Code Section 793(e), such conduct being prejudicial to good order and discipline in the armed forces and being of a nature to bring discredit upon the armed forces.

SPECIFICATION 11: In that Private First Class Bradley E. Manning, U.S. Army, did, at or near Contingency Operating Station Hammer, Iraq, between on or about 1 November 2009 and on or about 8 January 2010, having unauthorized possession of information relating to the national defense, to wit: a file named “BE22 PAX.zip” containing a video named “BE22 PAX.wmv”, with reason to believe such information could be used to the injury of the United States or to the advantage of any foreign nation, willfully communicate, deliver, transmit, or cause to be communicated, delivered, or transmitted, the said information, to a person not entitled to receive it, in violation of 18 U.S. Code Section 793(e), such conduct being prejudicial to good order and discipline in the armed forces and being of a nature to bring discredit upon the armed forces.

SPECIFICATION 12: In that Private First Class Bradley E. Manning, U.S. Army, did, at or near Contingency Operating Station Hammer, Iraq, between on or about 28 March 2010 and on or about 4 May 2010, steal, purloin, or knowingly convert to his use or the use of another, a record or thing of value of the United states or of a department or agency thereof, to wit: the Department of State Net-Centric Diplomacy data base containing more than 250,000 records belonging to the United States government, of a value of more than $1,000, in violation of 18 U.S. Code Section 641, such conduct being prejudicial to good order and discipline in the armed forces and being of a nature to bring discredit upon the armed forces.

SPECIFICATION 13: In that Private First Class Bradley E. Manning, U.S. Army, did, at or near Contingency Operating Station Hammer, Iraq, between on or about 28 March 2010 and on or about 27 May 2010, having knowingly exceeded authorized access on a Secret Internet Protocol Router Network computer, and by means of such conduct having obtained information that has been determined by the United States government pursuant to an Executive Order or statute to require protection against unauthorized disclosure for reasons of national defense or foreign relations, to wit: more than seventy-five classified United States Department of State cables, willfully communicate, deliver, transmit, or cause to be communicated, delivered, or transmitted the said information, to a person not entitled to receive it, with reason to believe that such information so obtained could be used to the injury of the United States, or to the advantage of any foreign nation, in violation of 18 U.S. Code Section 1030(a)(1), such conduct being prejudicial to good order and discipline in the armed forces and being of a nature to bring discredit upon the armed forces.

SPECIFICATION 14: In that Private First Class Bradley E. Manning, U.S. Army, did, at or near Contingency Operating Station Hammer, Iraq, between on or about 15 February 2010 and on or about 18 February 2010, having knowingly exceeded authorized access on a Secret Internet Protocol Router Network computer, and by means of such conduct having obtained information that has been determined by the United States government pursuant to an Executive Order or statute to require protection against unauthorized disclosure for reasons of national defense or foreign relations, to wit: a classified Department of State cable titled “Reykjavik-13″, willfully communicate, deliver, transmit, or cause to be communicated, delivered, or transmitted the said information, to a person not entitled to receive it, with reason to believe that such information so obtained could be used to the injury of the United States, or to the advantage of any foreign nation, in violation of 18 U.S. Code Section 1030(a)(1),such conduct being prejudicial to good order and discipline in the armed forces and being of a nature to bring discredit upon the armed forces.

SPECIFICATION 15: In that Private First Class Bradley E. Manning, U.S. Army, did, at or near Contingency Operating Station Hammer, Iraq, between on or about 15 February 2010 and on or about 15 March 2010, having unauthorized possession of information relating to the national defense, to wit: a classified record produced by a United States Amy intelligence organization, dated 18 March 2008, with reason to believe such information could be used to the injury of the United States or to the advantage of any foreign nation, willfully communicate, deliver, transmit, or cause to be communicated, delivered, or transmitted, the said information, to a person not entitled to receive it, in violation of 18 U.S. Code Section 793(e),such conduct being prejudicial to good order and discipline in the armed forces and being of a nature to bring discredit upon the armed forces.

SPECIFICATION 16: In that Private First Class Bradley E. Manning, U.S. Army, did, at or near Contingency Operating Station Hammer, Iraq, between on or about 11 May 2010 and on or about 27 May 2010, steal, purloin, or knowingly convert to his use or the use of another, a record or thing of value of the united States or of a department or agency thereof, to wit: the United States Forces -Iraq Microsoft Outlook / SharePoint Exchange Server global address list belonging to the United States government, of a value of more than $1,000, in violation of 18 U.S. Code Section 641, such conduct being prejudicial to good order and discipline in the armed forces and being of a nature to bring discredit upon the armed forces.

ADDITIONAL CHARGE III: VIOLATION OF THE UCMJ, ARTICLE 92.

SPECIFICATION I: In that Private First Class Bradley E. Manning, U.S. Army, did, at or near Contingency Operating Station Hammer, Iraq, between on or about 1 November 2009 and on or about 8 March 2010, violate a lawful general regulation, to wit : paragraph 4-5(a) (4) , Army Regulation 25-2, dated 24 October 2007, by attempting to bypass network or information system security mechanisms.

SPECIFICATION 2: In that Private First Class Bradley E. Manning, U.S. Amy, did, at or near Contingency Operating Station Hammer, Iraq, between on or about 11 February 2010 and on or about 3 April 2010, violate a lawful general regulation, to wit: paragraph 4-5 (a)(3), Army Regulation 25-2, dated 24 October 2007, by adding unauthorized software to a Secret Internet Protocol Router Network computer.

SPECIFICATION 3: In that Private First Class Bradley E. Manning, U.S. Army, did, at or near Contingency Operating Station Hammer, Iraq, on or about 4 May 2010, violate a lawful general regulation, to wit: paragraph 4-5(a) (3),Army Regulation 25-2, dated 24 October 2007, by adding unauthorized software to a Secret Internet Protocol Router Network computer.

SPECIFICATION 4: In that Private First Class Bradley E. Manning, U.S. Army, did, at or near Contingency Operating Station Hammer, Iraq, between on or about 11 May 2010 and on or about 27 May 2010, violate a lawful general regulation, to wit: paragraph 4-5(a)(3), Army Regulation 25-2, dated 24 October 2007, by using an information system in a manner other than its intended purpose,

SPECIFICATION 5: In that Private First Class Bradley E. Manning, U.S. Army, did, at or near Contingency Operating Station Hammer, Iraq, on divers occasions between on or about 1 November 2009 and on or about 27 May 2010, violate a lawful general regulation, to wit: paragraph 7-4, Army Regulation 380-5, dated 29 September 2000 by wrongfully storing classified information.

Updated 8:00 p.m. EST.

Senior editor Kevin Poulsen contributed to this report

See Also:

• Assange Opposed Quick Publication of Cables Out of Concern for Bradley Manning
• Suspected Wikileaks Source Described Crisis of Conscience Leading to Leaks
• U.S. Intelligence Analyst Arrested in Wikileaks Video Probe

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Defense lawyer David Coombs posted this today:

Article 104 Offense

This is the Military Judges’ Benchbook instruction on the elements of the offense of Article 104.

AIDING THE ENEMY—GIVING INTELLIGENCE TO THE ENEMY (ARTICLE 104)

ELEMENTS:

(1) That (state the time and place alleged), the accused, without proper authority, knowingly gave intelligence information to (a) certain person(s), namely: (state the name or description of the enemy alleged to have received the intelligence information);

(2) That the accused did so by (state the manner alleged);

(3) That (state the name or description of the enemy alleged to have received the intelligence information) was an enemy; and

(4) That this intelligence information was true, at least in part.

d. DEFINITIONS AND OTHER INSTRUCTIONS:

“Intelligence” means any helpful information, given to and received by the enemy, which is true, at least in part.

“Enemy” includes (not only) organized opposing forces in time of war, (but also any other hostile body that our forces may be opposing) (such as a rebellious mob or a band of renegades) (and includes civilians as well as members of military organizations). (“Enemy” is not restricted to the enemy government or its armed forces. All the citizens of one belligerent are enemies of the government and the citizens of the other.)

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Wikileaks tweated this:

Based on statements, WikiLeaks, a publisher, is ‘the enemy’. Sets a very dangerous precedent for all media.

To be convicted of “aiding an enemy” US must prove alleged recipient @WikiLeaks, was “hostile body”

‘aiding the enemy’, following US claims, suggests WikiLeaks will be defined as ‘the enemy’. A serious abuse

Capital charge ‘aiding the enemy’ is a vindictive attack on Manning for exercising his right to silence. No evidence of any such thing.