It seems Chelsea Manning may end up back in jail again, and soon.
A U.S. law enforcement source told Reuters that Manning will likely be jailed again if she refuses to comply with a new grand jury subpoena. The former U.S. Army intelligence analyst–who was infamously convicted of violating the Espionage Act by disclosing thousands of “classified (and unclassified but ‘sensitive’) documents” to WikiLeaks–was held in contempt for 62 days after refusing to comply with a previous subpoena from in the Eastern District of Virginia.
When Manning was released last week, she posted a YouTube video explaining why she did not comply with the last subpoena and will not with a new subpoena that is compelling her testimony on May 16.
“As a general principle, I object to grand juries. Prosecutors run grand juries behind closed doors and in secret without a judge present. Therefore, I decline to answer any questions,” Manning said. Later, she added “when I arrive at the court house this coming Thursday, what happened last time will occur again. I will not cooperate with this or any other grand jury.”
Manning’s testimony has been sought in a case against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange. Manning allegedly helped Manning hack government computers, tried to hide Manning’s role in leaks, and encouraged Manning to do more leaking. For her past crimes, Manning was sentenced to 35 years in prison, but that sentence was commuted by then-President Barack Obama. That was after seven years of imprisonment, which began when Manning was arrested in 2010.
Matt Naham contributed to this report.
[Image via Jack Taylor/Getty Images]
