FORT MEADE, Md. — Defense attorneys for Pfc. Bradley Manning — an Army intelligence specialist accused of leaking government secrets — argued Saturday that Manning’s status as a gay soldier prior to the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” played a role in his actions.
Bradley Manning
At a hearing to determine whether Manning will be court-martialed on 22 charges, including aiding the enemy, attorney’s began laying out a defense to show that Manning’s struggled in an environment hostile to homosexuality, which contributed to mental and emotional problems that should have barred him from having access to sensitive material.
Among the first issues to arise Saturday was whether Manning’s sexual orientation is relevant to the case against him.
The defense revealed that Manning had written to one of his supervisors in Baghdad before his arrest, saying he was suffering from gender-identity disorder. He included a picture of himself dressed as a woman and talked about how it was affecting his ability to do his job and even think clearly.
Maj. Matthew Kemkes, a defense lawyer, asked Special Agent Toni Graham, an Army criminal investigator, whether she had talked to people who believed Manning was gay or found evidence among his belongings relating to gender-identity disorder. The condition often is described as a mental diagnosis in which people believe they were born the wrong sex.
Graham said such questions were irrelevant to the investigation. “We already knew before we arrived that Pfc. Manning was a homosexual,” Graham said.
Witnesses at the hearing noted that Manning had created a female alter ego, calling himself Breanna Manning.
Several Army investigators — pressed by Manning’s defense team — testified that in the course of their investigation they became aware of Manning’s female alter ego, and that a search of Manning’s room in Baghdad found medical information about female hormone treatments for people with gender identity disorder.
Manning is accused of leaking hundreds of thousands of sensitive items to the anti-secrecy group WikiLeaks, including Iraq and Afghanistan war logs, State Department cables and a military video of a 2007 American helicopter attack in Iraq that killed 11 men, including a Reuters news photographer and his driver.
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i support serving and being gay….but USA AMERICA RULES what did tthis dude do
His gender identity has nothing to do with anything.
hm. interesting
?
Gender identity ‘disorder’?
So gender identity disorder and the fact that he is gay caused him to leak government secrets?
So being in the closet meant he could not keep secrets??? WTF ?!?!?!?!
There are thousands and thousands of men and women who serve(d) (me included) and never betrayed our country…and there are many many straight people that have betrayed for centuries…. So the score of betrayal liars traitors is: strait people: 10500 gay: 1 ….hello.
What a cop out!
Using this soldiers gender identity and/or sexual orientation as an “insanity plea” is preposterous and feeds into various argument the opposition made concerning the repeal of DADT. Not to mention how it will damage the perception of LGBT soldiers currently serving. And transgender soldiers are considered mentally ill and unfit to serve by the Pentagon despite any and all progress made by the APA. This defense will only hamper future equal treatment for trans soldiers. Thanks so much guys.
just saw this on the news a little while ago, I dont understand how this can be considered a defense-How unfair to those out their who identify with this & the fact with as much negativity the LGBT community already deals with, that this could actually cause someone to trade information-come on, take responsibility for your own actions & dont balme it on anything else, you (the person) chose to share information-it had NOTHING to do with what sex you choose to identify by.
oh great, now they are gonna try an say we trans folk are completely off our rocker…just what we need.
this are the same idiots who said the high suicide rate in iraq bound american soldiers was the presence of sand. fucking nazis.
wow! how messed up is this?! disorder?! what?!
The fact that this jackass would allow his lawyer to use this as a defense is a slap in the face to everyone in the LGBT community. Using the excuse that he was in a hostile environment is crap – he could have got out of there without doing what he did. His defense is no better than the “gay panic” or “trans panic” murderers us. I know plenty of active duty servicemen/women and veterans who are LGBT and it didn’t make them traitors! Thanks Manning for throwing us under the bus – hope you get thrown in a prison cell for a long time to come!
Hate to say it, but if it gets him off the hook, so be it. Bradley Manning is a hero for the ages.
hold on…..he is attracted to men and identifies as “breanna” doen’t that make him a heterosexual woman?????
I don’t think is a good defense. A lot of us struggle but we don’t try to destroy our Country. This is if this is what he did.
Good Job Manning! I am a 6 yr. veteran of the war, former spec. ops., former 2lt., a very proud American, and YES I AM A TRANSSEXUAL WOMAN! I served proudly and would do it again without hesitation and I did not/would not/could not betray my country for any reason to any one! You are a disgrace to your uniform, a disgrace to your country, and a disgrace to the very people of the LGBT that I proudly call my family! You are a traitor, a coward, and a lie! You have no honor, no courage, no self respect, no pride, and I would be proud to stand in the courtroom with you and listen to the verdict of “GUILTY! We hereby sentence you to life in the Fort Leavenworth Penitentiary for the duration of your natural existence, with no possibility of parole!” I hope that they throw the library at your arse and then tell everyone in the prison exactly what you did and why you are there!!! “I swear to defend this country against ALL enemies, foreign and domestic”, that means you too, Jackass!!!
While my first instinct is to dismiss this guy as just some stupid traitor, I feel like we all have to think. Murderers have gotten off of their charges for a lot less. a LOT less, and I agree with Mr. Christoper Bullivant. Bradley Manning’s leaked information had little to no effect on our military, and he has suffered cruel and unusual punishment since.
If this helps him get out of his charges, so be it. Go Brad!
What a cop out. Let’s add fuel to the ignorant fires already burning for decades citing why gays shouldn’t serve in the military open or otherwise. If he was having a coming out issue he could’ve just gone home without trading Military information to the public at large even though it just made the military have to take responsibilty for what it doesn’t want anyone to know and don’t think it affected any ongoing military strategies; but to use the “Breanna did it!” defense is just weak and makes thousands of others LGBT members serving honorably to protect the freedoms most of us take for granted on a daily basis look bad. Shame on feeling that was your only way out. Man up! You did what you did knowing the difference between right & wrong. Own it and hang on to some scrap of self respect, Manning.
The actions that this soldier had took is a HUGE slap in the face and is a complete disgrace to this country and to LGBT family ( My Family) … I say let the lying low life traitor rot in prison for life …
You can NEVER trust a defense attorney assigned by the state. Manning’s military-assigned defense attorney is not there to present the case impartially, but there to give the appearance of a fair trial while sending an unmistakable message to potential whistleblowers: Say something and we’ll ruin your life forever.
Cera…you couldn’t have put it better…this soldier betrayed the US…No I don’t approve of Wikileaks…and now he or she…is betraying LBGT community by permitting this defense which proves…theyre just a self serving attention seeking asshole……
Former Army Combat Medic.