Chelsea Manning To Be Released From Prison

Chelsea Manning, the controversial whistleblower who leaked classified documents regarding the U.S. military's conduct in Iraq, will be a free woman once again, following a judge's order to release her from prison. The decision comes less than 24 hours after Manning attempted suicide.

Subpoenaed by a grand jury to testify against Wikileaks founder Julian Assange, Manning refused to cooperate, claiming she had moral objections to the investigation. As a result, Manning was jailed for contempt of court. In the months that past, her subpoena expired, opening the door for her release.

"The court finds that Ms. Manning’s appearance before the grand jury is no longer needed, in light of which her detention no longer serves any coercive purpose," wrote Federal District Court Judge Anthony J. Trenga.

The release would not exempt her from the fines accrued from the contempt of court infraction, a total of $256,000.

This would not be the first time a grand jury's subpoena of Ms. Manning had run out. A grand jury first ordered Manning to testify in the investigation of Assange in March 2019. When that subpoena expired in May, investigators received a second and she was ordered her to stay in prison until she cooperated. However, nearly a year later, and following her second release, investigators may seek a third.

** Chelsea was taken into custody today for resisting a grand jury in the Eastern District of Virginia

Chelsea provided the following statement: pic.twitter.com/tWjEOFyhYn

— Chelsea E. Manning (@xychelsea) March 8, 2019

Since being imprisoned, Manning's mental health has become the subject of much concern. In 2013, a judge sentenced to her 35 years for providing more than 700,000 documents to Wikileaks. Three years later, she twice attempted suicide. Months later, before leaving office, President Barack Obama commuted the rest of her sentence and she was released in 2017.