Manning Acquitted of Aiding the Enemy
A military judge acquitted Pfc. Bradley Manning of the most serious accusation against him — that he aided U.S. enemies — but found him guilty Tuesday on most other charges related to his disclosure of documents to the antisecrecy website WikiLeaks.
The acquittal of Private Manning on the paramount charge affirmed arguments by his lawyers and supporters that leaking documents to the news media or Internet doesn’t equate to acting in concert with American foes like al Qaeda.
The decision on that charge came as a setback for the Obama administration, which has been seeking a resounding victory in its campaign to discourage the disclosure of government secrets through an aggressive series of leak prosecutions.
