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| WikiLeaks suspect Bradley Manning made nooses in jail, says prosecution | WikiLeaks suspect Bradley Manning made nooses in jail, says prosecution |
| (30 days later) | |
| The military court hearing the court martial of the WikiLeaks suspect Bradley Manning was on Friday shown a noose that the soldier made from a sheet in his cell just days after his arrest for having allegedly committed the largest leak of state secrets in US history. | The military court hearing the court martial of the WikiLeaks suspect Bradley Manning was on Friday shown a noose that the soldier made from a sheet in his cell just days after his arrest for having allegedly committed the largest leak of state secrets in US history. |
| The knotted pink sheet, which was held aloft by the chief prosecution lawyer, Major Ashden Fein, dramatically illustrated the suicidal state that Manning was in when he was brought to Kuwait immediately after his arrest at an operating base outside Baghdad in May 2010. The prosecutor also produced a second noose made from sandbag ties and two metal objects that he suggested Manning may have intended to use to harm himself, though the soldier said he did not recollect those items. | The knotted pink sheet, which was held aloft by the chief prosecution lawyer, Major Ashden Fein, dramatically illustrated the suicidal state that Manning was in when he was brought to Kuwait immediately after his arrest at an operating base outside Baghdad in May 2010. The prosecutor also produced a second noose made from sandbag ties and two metal objects that he suggested Manning may have intended to use to harm himself, though the soldier said he did not recollect those items. |
| The exhibits were shown at the start of the prosecution case in a so-called Article 13 hearing – a motion brought by Manning in an attempt to have his charges thrown out or any sentence reduced, on grounds that he was subjected to unlawful pre-trial punishment while he was held at the brig in Quantico marine base in Virginia in 2010-11. The soldier was kept on an extreme custodial regime designed to thwart suicide attempts that included removing his clothes at night, keeping him under constant observation and chaining him whenever he left his cell, which he was allowed to do for only 20 minutes every day. | The exhibits were shown at the start of the prosecution case in a so-called Article 13 hearing – a motion brought by Manning in an attempt to have his charges thrown out or any sentence reduced, on grounds that he was subjected to unlawful pre-trial punishment while he was held at the brig in Quantico marine base in Virginia in 2010-11. The soldier was kept on an extreme custodial regime designed to thwart suicide attempts that included removing his clothes at night, keeping him under constant observation and chaining him whenever he left his cell, which he was allowed to do for only 20 minutes every day. |
| On Thursday Manning, 24, delivered his first publicly spoken statements since he was put into custody 918 days ago on suspicion of having handed hundreds of thousands of US diplomatic cables to the whistleblower website WikiLeaks. Under questioning from his own defence lawyer, David Coombs, he painted a picture of a Kafkaesque world in which the more he tried to convince Marines authorities that he had recovered and was no longer a suicide risk, the more he was treated as though he were vulnerable and put under harsh restrictions that expert witnesses this week described as worse than Guantanamo Bay or even death row. | On Thursday Manning, 24, delivered his first publicly spoken statements since he was put into custody 918 days ago on suspicion of having handed hundreds of thousands of US diplomatic cables to the whistleblower website WikiLeaks. Under questioning from his own defence lawyer, David Coombs, he painted a picture of a Kafkaesque world in which the more he tried to convince Marines authorities that he had recovered and was no longer a suicide risk, the more he was treated as though he were vulnerable and put under harsh restrictions that expert witnesses this week described as worse than Guantanamo Bay or even death row. |
| In a theatrical move, Coombs placed white tape on the floor of the court room in exactly the dimensions of Manning's cell throughout the nine months he was held in Quantico, marking out a 6ft by 8ft (180cm by 240cm) area. The cell contained a toilet that was in the line of vision of the observation booth, and Manning was not allowed toilet paper. When he needed it, he told the court, he would stand to attention and shout out to the observation guards: "Lance Corporal Detainee Manning requests toilet paper!" | In a theatrical move, Coombs placed white tape on the floor of the court room in exactly the dimensions of Manning's cell throughout the nine months he was held in Quantico, marking out a 6ft by 8ft (180cm by 240cm) area. The cell contained a toilet that was in the line of vision of the observation booth, and Manning was not allowed toilet paper. When he needed it, he told the court, he would stand to attention and shout out to the observation guards: "Lance Corporal Detainee Manning requests toilet paper!" |
| The burden of proof falls to the US government to justify why it imposed such stringent restrictions on the soldier. Fein's line of questioning was clearly intended to portray Manning's conditions in a more favourable light than had been suggested by the defence the previous day – he invited Manning to talk about the books he was allowed to read (which included Ford Madox Ford's The Good Soldier), about the complaints procedure he was allowed to follow and the contact he was granted with lawyers and friends. | The burden of proof falls to the US government to justify why it imposed such stringent restrictions on the soldier. Fein's line of questioning was clearly intended to portray Manning's conditions in a more favourable light than had been suggested by the defence the previous day – he invited Manning to talk about the books he was allowed to read (which included Ford Madox Ford's The Good Soldier), about the complaints procedure he was allowed to follow and the contact he was granted with lawyers and friends. |
| But Manning frequently corrected the prosecution's version of events. When Fein said there had been a skylight and windows outside his cell, Manning replied: "Further down the hallway, yes sir." On Thursday Manning had testified that he could only see the natural light that came from these windows as a reflected gleam when he held his head to the door of his cell and looked through the crack. | But Manning frequently corrected the prosecution's version of events. When Fein said there had been a skylight and windows outside his cell, Manning replied: "Further down the hallway, yes sir." On Thursday Manning had testified that he could only see the natural light that came from these windows as a reflected gleam when he held his head to the door of his cell and looked through the crack. |
| Fein read from a weekly series of reports signed by Manning that gave a progress report to his army liaison officers. Most of the reports recorded that the inmate thought his treatment at the hands of the guards and the brig facility was "excellent" and several said that he had "no issues" of concern to raise. | Fein read from a weekly series of reports signed by Manning that gave a progress report to his army liaison officers. Most of the reports recorded that the inmate thought his treatment at the hands of the guards and the brig facility was "excellent" and several said that he had "no issues" of concern to raise. |
| Manning, however, said he had regularly discussed his frustration at being held so long under a so-called "prevention of injury order" or PoI – which is only marginally more relaxed than full suicide watch – but the officers had chosen not to write that on the form. | Manning, however, said he had regularly discussed his frustration at being held so long under a so-called "prevention of injury order" or PoI – which is only marginally more relaxed than full suicide watch – but the officers had chosen not to write that on the form. |
| The prosecutor also brought up conversations between Manning and friends and family members who visited him at the brig, citing the transcripts of routine recordings that had been made. Fein said, incredulously, that in those interactions the soldier had asked how his glasses looked on his face, discussed hiring a PR agent and talked about his need of money, yet never made any effort to sound the alarm over the harsh treatment he was receiving. | The prosecutor also brought up conversations between Manning and friends and family members who visited him at the brig, citing the transcripts of routine recordings that had been made. Fein said, incredulously, that in those interactions the soldier had asked how his glasses looked on his face, discussed hiring a PR agent and talked about his need of money, yet never made any effort to sound the alarm over the harsh treatment he was receiving. |
| "Rather than ever alluding to your treatment in the brig, you were more interested in asking a private investigator to find a fundraiser for you," Fein said. | "Rather than ever alluding to your treatment in the brig, you were more interested in asking a private investigator to find a fundraiser for you," Fein said. |
| Manning later riposted that he had not gone into any detail about his conditions because he knew his visitor conversations were being recorded. "I was also concerned they might end my visits and say I did something wrong," he said. | Manning later riposted that he had not gone into any detail about his conditions because he knew his visitor conversations were being recorded. "I was also concerned they might end my visits and say I did something wrong," he said. |
| Contrary to the prosecution's portrait of him as someone who was more concerned about his public image than about any mistreatment, Manning said that he had expressly instructed his lawyer not to court the press. | Contrary to the prosecution's portrait of him as someone who was more concerned about his public image than about any mistreatment, Manning said that he had expressly instructed his lawyer not to court the press. |
| "I didn't want you going out and making interviews and grand standing," he told Coombs. "I wanted a court martial, I didn't want the court of public opinion." | "I didn't want you going out and making interviews and grand standing," he told Coombs. "I wanted a court martial, I didn't want the court of public opinion." |
| Despite this being the most serious stage of the pre-trial proceedings that began last December, there were moments of levity in which Manning displayed to the court his quirky sense of humour. Asked by Fein if he wanted a comfort break, the soldier replied: "In seven minutes, I can control my bladder." | Despite this being the most serious stage of the pre-trial proceedings that began last December, there were moments of levity in which Manning displayed to the court his quirky sense of humour. Asked by Fein if he wanted a comfort break, the soldier replied: "In seven minutes, I can control my bladder." |
| He also explained why he had asked for new underwear during his spell at Quantico by saying: "No matter how much you washed them, they still smelled of Iraq." | He also explained why he had asked for new underwear during his spell at Quantico by saying: "No matter how much you washed them, they still smelled of Iraq." |
| The Article 13 hearing is just one of several ways in which Manning and his defence team are seeking to reduce the severity of any possible sentence. Under the most severe of the 22 counts he faces – "aiding the enemy" – he could be detained in military custody for the rest of his life. | The Article 13 hearing is just one of several ways in which Manning and his defence team are seeking to reduce the severity of any possible sentence. Under the most severe of the 22 counts he faces – "aiding the enemy" – he could be detained in military custody for the rest of his life. |
| In the hope of avoiding that fate, Manning has effectively admitted that he transferred government information to WikiLeaks while he was working as an intelligence analyst in Iraq. It remains to be seen whether such a manoeuvre will persuade the US government to handle his prosecution more leniently. | In the hope of avoiding that fate, Manning has effectively admitted that he transferred government information to WikiLeaks while he was working as an intelligence analyst in Iraq. It remains to be seen whether such a manoeuvre will persuade the US government to handle his prosecution more leniently. |
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