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Agorism
12-17-2010, 03:42 PM
US Offering Manning Deal to Testify Against Assange

Case Against Assange Next to Impossible Without Manning

http://news.antiwar.com/2010/12/17/us-offering-manning-deal-to-testify-against-assange


The Obama Administration is reportedly offering a plea bargain to the detained Pfc Bradley Manning, if he agrees to testify against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange that Assange pressured him to release the various classified documents.

Manning is facing several decades in a military prison over his alleged role in the releases, but as an active duty member of the military he is being charged under the military’s legal code, not the civilian one.

Which makes charging Julian Assange, who seems to be the administration’s primary target, considerably more difficult, as he is neither an American citizen nor a member of the American military, nor indeed were any of his alleged misdeeds committed on American soil.

This makes the Justice Department’s hopes of prosecuting him extremely difficult, but right now those efforts seem to be centering on claims Assange could be charged with conspiracy for “encouraging” Manning. The only evidence to that effect is a chatlog, and would almost certainly be dismissed as hearsay unless they can convince Manning to testify as well.

Convincing Manning will likely be easier said than done, as the private clearly had a strong belief in the importance of releasing the documents, and reports of his mistreatment in detention are unlikely to make him any more friendly to the idea of a plea deal.

pcosmar
12-17-2010, 03:46 PM
Torture a man long enough and he will tell you anything you want to hear.

:mad:

coastie
12-17-2010, 03:58 PM
Torture a man long enough and he will tell you anything you want to hear.

:mad:

Which is precisely where this will lead, I'm 99.9998% sure.:mad:

Assange himself has said it's impossible to tie Manning to Wikileaks either way, as the "leaks" are supposedly 100% anonymous.

Agorism
12-17-2010, 04:02 PM
Seems it had nothing to do with previously dropped charges of condom failure after all.

coastie
12-17-2010, 05:15 PM
Seems it had nothing to do with previously dropped charges of condom failure after all.


Damn, whodathunkit?:p

amy31416
12-17-2010, 05:20 PM
Torture a man long enough and he will tell you anything you want to hear.

:mad:

Remember the good old days when "confessions" obtained under duress or torture were thrown out of court? I read up on isolation alone and what it does to many people--even McCain and a few others admitted that isolation was worse than physical torture. Being an introvert and a bit of a hermit, that's not very easy for me to understand, but apparently your mind starts turning to mush. You hallucinate, become obsessive-compulsive, suicidal, easily enraged, distrustful and it's very difficult to assimilate back into society. Many people come out of isolation brain-damaged either because of lack of stimulation or they start banging their heads against a wall, or both.

I hope Manning had some way of coping, not just for Assange's sake either.

Monarchist
12-17-2010, 05:34 PM
I think he should take it; I don't think they'll be able to bring Assange before a judge.

pcosmar
12-17-2010, 06:27 PM
I think he should take it; I don't think they'll be able to bring Assange before a judge.

I believe that Julian Assange would enjoy an open trial.
Which is why is will not happen or will be a secret trial.

SirBlend12
12-17-2010, 10:09 PM
I read up on isolation alone and what it does to many people--even McCain and a few others admitted that isolation was worse than physical torture.

It seems that this is exactly what they're going for... and then some.

http://www.salon.com/news/opinion/glenn_greenwald/2010/12/14/manning/index.html
"From the beginning of his detention, Manning has been held in intensive solitary confinement. For 23 out of 24 hours every day -- for seven straight months and counting -- he sits completely alone in his cell. Even inside his cell, his activities are heavily restricted; he's barred even from exercising and is under constant surveillance to enforce those restrictions. For reasons that appear completely punitive, he's being denied many of the most basic attributes of civilized imprisonment, including even a pillow or sheets for his bed (he is not and never has been on suicide watch). For the one hour per day when he is freed from this isolation, he is barred from accessing any news or current events programs."

Let's hope that he can hold out not only for Assange's sake, but for his own.

amy31416
12-17-2010, 10:26 PM
It seems that this is exactly what they're going for... and then some.

http://www.salon.com/news/opinion/glenn_greenwald/2010/12/14/manning/index.html
"From the beginning of his detention, Manning has been held in intensive solitary confinement. For 23 out of 24 hours every day -- for seven straight months and counting -- he sits completely alone in his cell. Even inside his cell, his activities are heavily restricted; he's barred even from exercising and is under constant surveillance to enforce those restrictions. For reasons that appear completely punitive, he's being denied many of the most basic attributes of civilized imprisonment, including even a pillow or sheets for his bed (he is not and never has been on suicide watch). For the one hour per day when he is freed from this isolation, he is barred from accessing any news or current events programs."

Let's hope that he can hold out not only for Assange's sake, but for his own.

That's one of the many articles I read. Welcome to the forum. :)