Military officials today formally referred all charges against PFC Bradley Manning to a full court martial. Today’s announcement by the General Court-Martial Convening Authority, Major General Michael S. Linnington, endorses the recommendations made last month by Lt. Col. Paul Almanza, who presided over the Article 32 hearing in December. Supporters of the accused WikiLeaks whistle-blower have condemned these proceedings as fundamentally unjust.
“This administration owes all Americans an honest explanation for their extraordinary retaliation against Bradley Manning,” said Jeff Paterson, a lead organizer of the Bradley Manning Support Network. “President Obama and Secretary Clinton need to produce sworn depositions under conditions where they are required to tell the truth about Bradley Manning.”
Legal observers have noted that President Obama and Secretary Clinton have already inserted themselves into the case by declaring Manning to be guilty and making unsubstantiated accusations that the WikiLeaks materials somehow harmed national security. Manning’s defense team has argued that these claims contradict the government’s own impact assessments, which military prosecutors have blocked from consideration during the proceedings. On January 20, Manning’s lead defense counsel David Coombs filed another request for the “WikiLeaks Task Force” and other entities to produce these records.
Bradley Manning Support Network
