05-17-2017, 12:57 PM
Manning Released From Prison
![[Image: 406D6ED500000578-4513874-image-a-14_1495008677249.jpg]](http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2017/05/17/09/406D6ED500000578-4513874-image-a-14_1495008677249.jpg)
Chelsea Manning, the transgender soldier convicted of giving classified government materials to WikiLeaks, was released from a Kansas military prison on Wednesday after serving seven years of her 35-year sentence. President Barack Obama granted 29-year-old Manning clemency in his final days in office in January.
Manning's attorneys have said Manning was subjected to violence in prison and argued the military mistreated her by requiring her to serve her sentence in an all-male prison, restricting her physical and mental health care and not allowing her to keep a feminine haircut.
In total, Manning released more than 700,000 classified military and diplomatic documents via WikiLeaks.She said she wanted to expose what she considered to be the US military's disregard of the effects of war on civilians and that she released information that she didn't believe would harm the United States.
Critics said the leaks laid bare some of the nation's most-sensitive secrets and endangered information sources, prompting the State Department to help some of those people move to protect their safety.
Several ambassadors were recalled, expelled or reassigned because of embarrassing disclosures. Manning, who was arrested in 2010, filed a transgender rights lawsuit in prison and attempted suicide twice last year, according to her lawyers.
Obama's decision to commute Manning's sentence to about seven years, including the time she spent locked up before being convicted, drew strong criticism from members of Congress and others, with Republican House Speaker Paul Ryan calling the move 'just outrageous'.
Supporters of Manning - who attempted suicide twice last year alone - said they feared she would not have been able to survive the long sentence. Now, she can complete her transition as a free, openly transgender woman.
Manning was able to start hormonal treatment in prison to begin transitioning toward her female identity. This transition is certain to speed up outside a prison environment Manning said denied her 'right to exist'.
(continued)
Chelsea Manning, the transgender soldier convicted of giving classified government materials to WikiLeaks, was released from a Kansas military prison on Wednesday after serving seven years of her 35-year sentence. President Barack Obama granted 29-year-old Manning clemency in his final days in office in January.
Manning's attorneys have said Manning was subjected to violence in prison and argued the military mistreated her by requiring her to serve her sentence in an all-male prison, restricting her physical and mental health care and not allowing her to keep a feminine haircut.
In total, Manning released more than 700,000 classified military and diplomatic documents via WikiLeaks.She said she wanted to expose what she considered to be the US military's disregard of the effects of war on civilians and that she released information that she didn't believe would harm the United States.
Critics said the leaks laid bare some of the nation's most-sensitive secrets and endangered information sources, prompting the State Department to help some of those people move to protect their safety.
Several ambassadors were recalled, expelled or reassigned because of embarrassing disclosures. Manning, who was arrested in 2010, filed a transgender rights lawsuit in prison and attempted suicide twice last year, according to her lawyers.
Obama's decision to commute Manning's sentence to about seven years, including the time she spent locked up before being convicted, drew strong criticism from members of Congress and others, with Republican House Speaker Paul Ryan calling the move 'just outrageous'.
Supporters of Manning - who attempted suicide twice last year alone - said they feared she would not have been able to survive the long sentence. Now, she can complete her transition as a free, openly transgender woman.
Manning was able to start hormonal treatment in prison to begin transitioning toward her female identity. This transition is certain to speed up outside a prison environment Manning said denied her 'right to exist'.
(continued)