Bradley Manning gets court date – 1½ years after imprisonment

Pfc. Bradley Manning

This lede tells you all you need to know:

One year, six months, and three weeks after he was first jailed in a military brig in Kuwait, alleged WikiLeaks leaker Bradley Manning will have his day in court: According to a blog post Monday from his lawyer David Coombs, the Army private first class will have a pre-trial hearing in Fort Meade, Maryland on December 16th, a day before his 24th birthday, to examine the government’s charges and evidence and determine whether to proceed with the case against him.

So, after being left to rot in a military brig for more than a year-and-a-half without ever being formally accused by any court – and during which time he’s undergone prolonged isolation and other sorts of punitive measures that have been called nothing less than psychological torture by human rights groups and legal experts – Pfc. Manning will finally get to appear in court so the prosecution can decide “whether to proceed with the case”.

I sorely wish you just couldn’t make this shit up.

(via @ggreenwald)

Tags: Bradley Manning • WikiLeaks