Judge Colonel Denise Lind used harsh words during today’s brief court martial hearing to describe Bradley Manning’s conduct.
"Manning's conduct was of a heedless nature that made it actually and imminently dangerous to others. His conduct was both wanton and reckless," Lind said in a series of written findings issued after prosecutors finished their sentencing arguments on Friday, Reuters reports.
Manning was convicted on 20 counts, including charges of espionage and theft, for giving classified documents to Wikileaks. He has not been sentenced yet.
"I understood what I was doing was wrong but I didn't appreciate the broader effects of my actions," Manning said during his sentencing hearing at Maryland's Fort Meade, CNN reports. "I only wanted to help people, not hurt people."
Brian Manning, Bradley’s father, does not understand how his son could have done what he has been convicted of doing.
"Logistically, I can't understand -- because knowing computers as well as I do -- how you could get that much data out of a room with three other people in there, you know, sitting in close proximity, where everybody could see what everybody was doing," he told Anderson Cooper, CNN reports.
Image: By United States Army [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons