US lawyer: Chelsea Manning faces possible solitary confinement

[webfact]

Lawyer: Chelsea Manning faces possible solitary confinement
By ROXANA HEGEMAN

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Convicted national security leaker Chelsea Manning could be placed in solitary confinement indefinitely for allegedly violating prison rules by having a copy of Vanity Fair with Caitlyn Jenner on the cover and an expired tube of toothpaste, among other things, her lawyer said Wednesday.

The former intelligence analyst, formerly known as Bradley Manning, was convicted in 2013 of espionage and other offenses for sending more than 700,000 classified documents while working in Iraq. She is serving a 35-year sentence at the military prison at Fort Leavenworth, for leaking reams of war logs, diplomatic cables and battlefield video to the anti-secrecy website WikiLeaks in 2010.

Her attorney, Nancy Hollander, said an Aug. 18 hearing is set at the Fort Leavenworth prison for the transgender Army private. The hearing before a three-person panel is closed, although Manning has asked that it be public.

"This is like prison disciplinary infractions in a civilian prison and there will be a hearing, but frankly it looks to me like harassment," Hollander said.

The military had no immediate comment Wednesday.

The prison charges include possession of prohibited property in the form of books and magazines while under administrative segregation; medicine misuse over the toothpaste; disorderly conduct for sweeping food onto the floor; and disrespect. All relate to alleged conduct on July 2 and 9. The maximum penalty Manning could face is indefinite solitary confinement.

"It is not uncommon in prisons to have charges that to the rest of us seem to be absurd," Hollander said. "Prisons are very controlled environments and they try to keep them very controlled and sometimes in that control they really go too far and I think that this is going too far."

Hollander is particularly troubled by the fact that Manning's reading material was taken away from her, including a novel about transgender issues, the book "Hacker, Hoaxer, Whistleblower, Spy — The Many Faces of Anonymous," the book "I am Malala," an issue of Cosmopolitan magazine containing an interview with Manning and the U.S. Senate report on CIA torture.

"There is certainly no security risk, and that could impinge on her free speech rights and attempt to silence her," she said.


-- (c) Associated Press 2015-08-13

[rethaier]

Expired toothpaste... Wow what a heinous infraction of rules.

[JeffreyO]

Expired toothpaste... Wow what a heinous infraction of rules.

It's a military prison. Dress right dress and everything in its place. I would have been penalized when I was in the army for having expired toothpaste. The fact that this is a prison does not remove the military lifestyle.

[JetsetBkk]

Expired toothpaste... Wow what a heinous infraction of rules.

Hey! Those toothpaste tubes can be really really sharp.

[Ulysses G.]

Give the traitor the maximum penalty.

[Linky]

You are supposed to be in prison AS punishment, not FOR punishment. Anyone that thinks it is ok to give someone indefinite solitary confinement for having a copy of Vanity Fair and expired toothpaste is just a moron.

Whoever thinks up this stuff Is certainly a sandwich short of a picnic.

[MyFriend You]

Expired toothpaste... Wow what a heinous infraction of rules.

The empty tube can be formed into a weapon.........

[robertson468]

So this is America's new form of human rights? Oh forgot, he/she is in prison and they can do what the hell they like, so it seems!

[arjunadawn]

You are supposed to be in prison AS punishment, not FOR punishment. Anyone that thinks it is ok to give someone indefinite solitary confinement for having a copy of Vanity Fair and expired toothpaste is just a moron.

Whoever thinks up this stuff Is certainly a sandwich short of a picnic.

Whoever does not on face value understand the issue regarding toothpaste and unapproved reading material can be understood. It may seem retaliatory or trivial. Various prisons have rules which may seem absurd, a military prison would seem another planet even to state prisoners. Imagine mixing the two most institutional and disciplined worlds together! This has been the case for hundreds of years. He should be afforded no different treatment for his crimes.

Indeed, a second toothbrush can be a shank, an expended cigarette a razor, toothpaste tube fermented product, binary ingredients, or any sort of contraband. As a military related national security issue I can surmise regarding the silly magazine that messaging may be the issue, after all he has an international following. He is a Private in the US Military- period! Making me wipe my arse with only two sheets of toilet paper at a time seems excessive; no one cried for me when I was his age. Having only 30 seconds to eat a meal, standing, while moving in line to the trash bin sounds hard to me. Being water-boarded in North Carolina seems hard to me- I dont hear anyone crying for all the other military people charged with the unique duty of military service and preparations for war. The world has become a bunch of pussies, IMO. Evolution is unkind to a polluted gene pool.

Edited August 14, 2015 by arjunadawn

[watcharacters]

Give the traitor the maximum penalty.

How about giving him a new tube of toothpaste?