Whistleblower Bradley Manning Found Not Guilty Of Aiding The Enemy

Private Bradley Manning, the whistleblower behind the biggest military leak in American history, has been acquitted of the charge “aiding the enemy”. This was the most serious offence he had been charged with and had he been found guilty he would of been jailed for life without any chance of parole. That said, Bradley Manning still finds himself in a tough situation after being found guilty of five counts of theft, five counts of violating the espionage act, computer fraud charges and a variety of military infractions under the uniform code of military justice.

Bradley Manning had requested a judge not a jury to determine his fate. Prior to the trial Bradley Manning had spent nearly 3 years in custody since being arrested for the huge leak of information he made to WikiLeaks that allowed them to publicly release information about thousands of U.S war crimes and other “hushed up” incidents. Bradley Manning is expected to be sentenced later on today, July 31st. Given all his other charges he could still be sentenced in a way that sees him spend the rest of his life in jail.

Hero or a criminal? What are your thoughts on Bradley Manning?

Image courtesy of The Telegraph