Press Release: Military moves to further isolate Bradley Manning

[EFerrari]

April 19, 2011 | Bradley Manning Support Network

MILITARY MOVES TO FURTHER ISOLATE BRADLEY MANNING WITH TRANSFER TO KANSAS

Alleged WikiLeaks source to be moved away from attorney and DC-area backers;
however, Kansas residents already preparing to spearhead support

“The military and Administration has been shocked by the support Bradley
Manning has garnered globally–specifically at the gates of Quantico,
Virginia. Last month, 500 supporters rallied near the Marine brig where PFC
Manning has been held since August 2010. It wasn’t a secret that we were
preparing to rally one to two thousand for an upcoming DC-area pre-trial
hearing,” explains Jeff Paterson of Courage to Resist and the Bradley
Manning Support Network.

“PFC Manning’s transfer from Virginia to Kansas limits his access to his
civilian attorney David Coombs of Rhode Island. It also severely limits
visitation opportunities by his East Coast family and friends,” explains
attorney Kevin Zeese, an organizer with the Bradley Manning Support Network.

Congressman Dennis Kucinich declared today, “Any move of PFC Manning does
not change the underlying fact, which has not been disputed by the
Department of Defense, that he has been held under conditions which may in
fact constitute ‘cruel and unusual punishment’ in violation of the 8th
amendment.”

Ethan McCord, Kansas resident and a former Soldier who appears in the
“Collateral Murder” video that PFC Manning is accused of leaking, declares,
“Bradley Manning is accused of doing nothing more than heroically telling
the truth. I and many others here in Kansas are already planning support
actions at Leavenworth.”

“I’m concerned that the military is simply moving to further isolate PFC
Manning. The idea that Quantico brig commander CWO2 Denise Barnes, without
direction from above, imposed and maintained the current torturous
conditions of PFC Manning’s detention is ridiculous. However, we will demand
that Army officials at Leavenworth finally take responsibility for
correcting this ongoing injustice. I know many hold out hope for them to do
so,” adds Paterson.

US Army intelligence analyst Private First Class Bradley E Manning,
23-years-old, has been held in maximum and solitary-like confinement
conditions since his arrest in Iraq in May 2010. He still awaits his first
public court hearing, now expected to begin in June. Over 300 of America’s
top legal scholars have decried PFC Manning’s confinement conditions as in
clear violation of the US Constitution. Over 3,500 individuals have
contributed over $280,000 towards PFC Manning’s legal fees and related
public education efforts. Over 500,000 people recently signed a statement to
President Obama calling for an end to PFC Manning’s torturous conditions of
confinement. The Bradley Manning Support Network is dedicated to winning the
freedom of PFC Manning.

# # #

http://networkedblogs.com/gREN4

[EFerrari]

1. Attorney checks in:

Why Was PFC Manning Moved to Fort Leavenworth?

Like many others, the defense first learned of PFC Manning’s move to Fort Leavenworth, Kansas by reading that a government official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, leaked the information to the Associated Press. The defense was not officially notified of PFC Manning’s pending move until twenty minutes before the Pentagon’s press briefing. This is despite the fact that the Pentagon has “been thinking about this for a while.” Although the news of the move came as a surprise to the defense, the timing did not.

The defense recently received reliable reports of a private meeting held on 13 January 2011, involving high-level Quantico officials where it was ordered that PFC Manning would remain in maximum custody and under prevention of injury watch indefinitely. The order to keep PFC Manning under these unduly harsh conditions was issued by a senior Quantico official who stated he would not risk anything happening “on his watch.” When challenged by a Brig psychiatrist present at the meeting that there was no mental health justification for the decision, the senior Quantico official issuing the order responded, “We will do whatever we want to do.” Based upon these statements and others, the defense was in the process of filing a writ of habeas corpus seeking a court ruling that the Quantico Brig violated PFC Manning’s constitutional right to due process. See United States ex. rel. Accardi v. Shaughnessy, 74 S.Ct. 499 (1954) (violation of due process where result of board proceeding was predetermined); United States v. Anderson, 49 M.J. 575 (N.M. Ct. Crim. App. 1998) (illegal punishment where Marine Corps had an unwritten policy automatically placing certain detainees in MAX custody). The facts surrounding PFC Manning’s pretrial confinement at Quantico make it clear that his detention was not “in compliance with legal and regulatory standards in all respects” as maintained at the Pentagon press briefing.

While the defense hopes that the move to Fort Leavenworth will result in the improvement of PFC Manning’s conditions of confinement, it nonetheless intends to pursue redress at the appropriate time for the flagrant violations of his constitutional rights by the Quantico confinement facility.

Posted by Army Court-Martial Defense Specialist at 9:00 PM

http://www.armycourtmartialdefense.info/2011/04/why-was-pfc-manning-moved-to-fort.html

[pacalo]

2. Could it be that the plan is to send him to the Disciplinary Barracks where he will

get the same treatment as before or, as The Guardian reported, to the Midwest Joint Regional Correctional Facility, which has medium security? How could anyone know for sure, as secretive as they've been.

Fort Leavenworth's military corrections complex houses the United States Disciplinary Barracks, the US army's maximum security prison, and the Midwest Joint Regional Correctional Facility, where Manning is thought most likely to be held while awaiting trial.

http://m.guardian.co.uk/world/richard-adams-blog/2011/a...

K&R.

[EFerrari]

3. Hard to know, at this point.

But it's difficult to hope for the best when the Pentagon has seen fit to mistreat this American right in our faces and with Obama's public approval. :shrug:

[cyberpj]

4. "Military Corrections Complex" which houses the "US Disciplinary Barracks" ? Really? nt

[pacalo]

6. What is the "Military Corrections Complex"?

[cyberpj]

12. Dunno. I got it from the quote box in your previous post. But it doesn't sound good. nt

[pacalo]

15. That wasn't the actual name of the complex; it was used as a general term.

[cyberpj]

16. D'oh! (smack) nt.

[mcollins]

14. a PC term for Military prison?

I don't know.

[KoKo]

5. K&R...so sad to see so many who approve of this torture of Manning or choose to ignore it.

These are indeed very dark times. Getting darker than Bush years...because in those years we still thought we had a chance of fighting back...and we had a strong grass roots supporting us that we thought we had grown.

Now...we are left out there adrift.

But, one day we will rise again...and we won't forget.

[Kurovski]

18. we're slipping down morally as a nation. We are decaying.

years of obsession on private sex lives as equaling morality issues and an appetite for violence that also looks askance at high level immorality and dishonesty and deception and high level white collar crime. Something. we are fucking rotting out.

organized nationwide attempts to keep teh gays from marrying, while brokers send americans to live in their cars.

[Overseas]

7. K&R.

The move is being marketed as a good thing -- medium security -- he'll have less harsh treatment is the expectation they seem to wish to evoke in the news bytes I've heard.

How very different the reality is.

[tekisui]

8. knr.

[Taverner]

9. Wondering when the DU "tough shit" crowd shows up

You know, the folks who celebrate their shackles of freedom...

[EFerrari]

11. It's pretty bizarre to see this cr@P being justified. n/t

[Taverner]

13. A while back there were lots of State Dept apologists

"He broke the law"

"He's a traitor"

"He made the baby Obama cry!"

Well, I made the last one up. Funny thing is I have a lot of friends who work at embassies, and they show no sympathy for PFC Manning either.

Ain't no love for the truth, and shoot the messenger seems to be the MO these days

[Solly Mack]

10. K&R

[Kurovski]

17. “The military and Administration has been shocked by the support Bradley...

has recieved globally" Really? They are that far gone morally? I almost don't believe it. Almost.

[Terra Alta]

19. He is a hero.

It's sad he is being treated this way, and a supposedly Democratic administration approves it.

Dumbya would be proud.