Federal Judge Orders Release of Chelsea Manning

A United States (U.S.) federal judge in Virginia ordered Thursday that Chelsea Manning be freed from jail, where she has been detained for a year after refusing to testify before a grand jury.

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"The court finds Ms. Manning's appearance before the Grand Jury is no longer needed, in light of which her detention no longer serves any coercive purpose," the judge who ordered the release said.

Manning, a former U.S. Army intelligence analyst, had exposed the war crimes committed by the U.S. by leaking hundreds of classified documents to WikiLeaks in 2010. A court-martial convicted her in 2013 for violating the Espionage Act, and she was sentenced to 35 years in prison.

The activist was freed after former President Barack Obama commuted her sentence during his final days as president in 2016. In March 2019, she was jailed once again for contempt of court after refusing to collaborate with the U.S. government in its case against WikiLeaks and Julian Assange.

She has since been confined, and her lawyers informed the public Wednesday that she had attempted suicide and was recovering in a hospital.

"Her actions today evidence the strength of her convictions, as well as the profound harm she continues to suffer as a result of her 'civil' confinement," her representatives' statement said.

On the other hand, the judge refused to waive the US$1,000-dollar-per-day fines levied against Manning over her year of detention, meaning that she is now required to pay US$256,000 to the State.