Chelsea Manning Sentenced to 35 Years for WikiLeaks Disclosures

U.S. Army Private Chelsea Manning was sentenced to 35 years in military prison for leaking classified documents to WikiLeaks that exposed war crimes and civilian casualties in Iraq and Afghanistan. The sentence was the longest ever imposed on a whistleblower under the Espionage Act and sparked international condemnation from human rights organizations.

The Court-Martial

On July 30, 2013, after a trial at Fort Meade, Maryland, Manning was convicted of 20 charges including violations of the Espionage Act, theft of government property, and computer fraud. She was acquitted of the most serious charge—“aiding the enemy”—which could have carried a death sentence or life imprisonment. The government had argued that by giving documents to WikiLeaks, knowing they would be published on the internet, Manning knowingly aided Al Qaeda and other enemies of the United States.

The trial was marked by severe restrictions on Manning’s defense. The judge prohibited arguments about Manning’s intent to inform the public, her lack of intent to harm national security, and the minimal actual damage caused by the leaks. The defense was barred from calling witnesses who would testify that the documents revealed war crimes and government wrongdoing, and from presenting evidence about the public value of the disclosures.

The Sentence

On August 21, 2013, military judge Colonel Denise Lind sentenced Manning to 35 years in prison, reduction in rank to Private E-1, forfeiture of all pay and allowances, and a dishonorable discharge. The 35-year sentence was unprecedented in its severity for a whistleblower prosecution, far exceeding sentences given to defendants who sold secrets to foreign governments for profit or who caused demonstrable harm to national security.

During sentencing, the prosecution failed to present credible evidence that Manning’s leaks had caused specific harm to individuals or national security. Government witnesses testified in vague terms about potential damage and the “chilling effect” on diplomatic relations, but could not identify concrete instances of harm. In contrast, the leaked documents had informed public debate about the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, exposed potential war crimes, and revealed systematic deception about civilian casualties.

Pre-Trial Detention and Torture

Manning’s sentence came after she had already endured three years of harsh pre-trial confinement, including 11 months in solitary confinement at the Marine Corps Base Quantico brig. During this period, she was subjected to forced nudity, sleep deprivation, and conditions that the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture, Juan Méndez, concluded constituted “cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment” in violation of the Convention Against Torture.

Manning testified about being forced to stand naked at attention during morning inspections, being denied adequate sleep, and being kept in isolation for 23 hours per day. These conditions prompted international protests and denunciations from human rights organizations, legal scholars, and government officials. The pre-trial abuse was so severe that the military judge reduced Manning’s eventual sentence by 112 days as compensation.

Significance

The 35-year sentence represented the Obama administration’s most extreme use of the Espionage Act against a whistleblower and sent a powerful deterrent message to other potential leakers. Human rights organizations worldwide condemned the sentence as disproportionate and punitive. Amnesty International called Manning a prisoner of conscience, stating that she should not have been prosecuted at all for disclosures that served the public interest.

The case highlighted a fundamental paradox in government accountability: Manning faced decades in prison for revealing potential war crimes, while no one responsible for the crimes documented in the leaked materials—including the killing of civilians and Reuters journalists shown in the “Collateral Murder” video—faced prosecution. The severe sentence reflected the government’s prioritization of secrecy over accountability and its willingness to impose harsh punishment on those who expose wrongdoing.