The government had previously indicated it would present all evidence related to all charges, regardless of the fact that Pfc. Bradley Manning pled guilty to some of the offenses he faced. But, in military court today, a military prosecutor informed the judge that the government would not be making a case that Manning committed the greater offense alleged in relation to the disclosure of a diplomatic cable from the US embassy in Reykjavik, Iceland.

A final pretrial hearing in the court martial of Pfc. Bradley Manning is being held today at Fort Meade in Maryland. Decisions on how to handle testimony from classified witnesses during the trial, which begins on June 3, are expected.

This week, another pretrial hearing is taking place at Fort Meade in the court martial of Pfc. Bradley Manning, the soldier who the United States military is prosecuting for disclosing information to WikiLeaks. It begins today and will take place over a period of at least two days. Except, for this hearing, the public will only be able to witness the first hour or so of proceedings and then the rest of the pretrial hearing will be a closed session without the press or public present.

Another pretrial motion hearing occurred in the court martial of Pfc. Bradley Manning at Fort Meade today. During a recess in proceedings, a military legal matter expert opened a yellow envelope and pulled out physical copies of a ruling issued and read in court by the judge.

Pfc. Bradley Manning is in military court at Fort Meade for another pretrial motion hearing. The hearing will be dealing with evidentiary issues and there may be a ruling on whether the government has to prove the enemy received information indirectly from Manning in order to prove he “aided the enemy.”

I covered this issue during the previous motion hearing. It was surreal because the defense was arguing the prosecution did not have to present evidence to prove the charge and was pushing for a lower threshold while the prosecution was arguing it did have to present this information. That switch occurred because the prosecutors want to present evidence that Osama bin Laden allegedly received digital media containing Iraq and Afghanistan war logs and State Department cables that he allegedly requested.

Just over one year ago, the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) sent a letter to the military judge presiding over Pfc. Bradley Manning’s court martial that decried the “lack of openness” in proceedings. It condemned the fact that “documents and information filed in the case” were “not available to the public anywhere.” It complained about the failure to give the public proper “notice of issues to be litigated in the case.”

The US Army did not respond appropriately to the letter.

A foundation dedicated to promoting and funding transparency journalism has released a recording of Pfc. Bradley Manning reading a statement he made in military court at Fort Meade about releasing United States government documents to WikiLeaks.

Former executive editor and current columnist of the New York Times has published an op-ed on Bradley Manning. Keller, who was executive editor when WikiLeaks obtained information from Manning and partnered with the newspaper to publish the disclosures, outlines what he believes could have happened.

The soldier the United States military is prosecuting for releasing classified information to WikiLeaks, Pfc. Bradley Manning, faces twenty-two charges. The most significant charge, which carries the potential of life in prison without parole if he is convicted, is the “aiding the enemy” charge.

Military prosecutors would like to present evidence that Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden received the information Manning allegedly released. On January 9, 2012, the government indicated to Judge Army Col. Denise Lind that it had “digital media found during the UBL raid.” There was a “letter from UBL to Al Qaeda requesting a member gather [Defense Department] information.” A response to that letter had CIDNE reports—war logs from Iraq and Afghanistan—and State Department cables attached. Bin Laden had these in his possession “at the time of the raid.”

Court martial proceedings at Fort Meade for Pfc. Bradley Manning, the soldier the United States military is prosecuting for allegedly releasing classified information to WikiLeaks, resume today. The military judge is expected to announce a ruling on the defense’s motion arguing Manning’s speedy trial rights have been violated. A four-day motion hearing is also expected to include deliberation over a possible plea.