Daniel Hale Sentenced to 45 Months for Exposing Drone War Crimes

Former Air Force intelligence analyst and NSA contractor Daniel Everette Hale was sentenced to 45 months in federal prison for leaking classified documents that exposed the devastating civilian toll of the U.S. drone warfare program. His disclosures revealed that nearly 90 percent of people killed in drone strikes were not the intended targets.

The Drone Papers

In February 2014, while working as a contractor at the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency after leaving the Air Force, Hale leaked 17 classified documents to The Intercept. Published as “The Drone Papers” in October 2015, these documents provided unprecedented insight into the Obama administration’s targeted killing program in Afghanistan, Yemen, and Somalia. The most damning revelation: during one five-month period, nearly 90 percent of people killed in U.S. drone strikes were not the intended targets—contradicting official government claims about “precision” warfare.

The documents exposed the bureaucratic machinery of assassination, showing how individuals were added to kill lists, the chain of command for authorizing strikes, and the systematic undercounting of civilian casualties. They revealed that the government classified any military-age male in a strike zone as an enemy combatant unless posthumously proven innocent.

Prosecution and Plea

Hale was indicted by a grand jury and arrested in 2019 on charges related to unauthorized disclosure of national defense information and theft of government property. On March 31, 2021, facing overwhelming evidence and the prospect of a decade in prison if convicted at trial, Hale pleaded guilty to a single count under the Espionage Act, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years.

Sentencing and Secret Evidence

On July 27, 2021, U.S. District Judge Liam O’Grady sentenced Hale to 45 months in prison. During sentencing, the government repeatedly referenced secret evidence, allegedly showing that the Islamic State had circulated Hale’s disclosures online, to argue for a maximum sentence of more than a decade. This secret evidence was never shared with the defense or made public, preventing any meaningful challenge to its credibility or relevance.

Before sentencing, Hale submitted a handwritten letter to the judge explaining his moral reasoning: “I am here because I stole something that was never mine to take—precious human life… I believe that it is wrong to kill, but it is especially wrong to kill the defenseless.” The letter powerfully articulated his conviction that exposing war crimes was a moral imperative.

Release and Recognition

Hale was released on July 5, 2024, after serving his full sentence. In December 2021, while still imprisoned, he received the Sam Adams Award for Integrity in Intelligence, recognizing his courage in exposing systematic killing of civilians.

Significance

Daniel Hale’s prosecution exemplified the government’s use of the Espionage Act to punish those who expose war crimes rather than prosecute those who commit them. No one involved in designing, approving, or executing the drone program that killed thousands of civilians faced legal consequences. Hale’s 45-month sentence—for revealing that the U.S. was systematically killing innocent people—stood in stark contrast to the impunity enjoyed by officials responsible for the deaths he documented.

The case demonstrated how classification powers can be weaponized to conceal evidence of crimes while secret evidence can be used to enhance punishment for those who reveal them. Hale’s prosecution sent a chilling message about the risks of exposing even the most egregious government misconduct.