A US military judge on Thursday accepted the terms under which army private Bradley Manning could plead guilty to some charges that he passed secret documents to WikiLeaks.
But Judge Denise Lind’s decision focused solely on the wording of a proposal from Manning and did not represent formal acceptance of his plea, which could come at future proceedings.
Lind approved the wording for seven counts facing Manning, accused of the worst secure data breach in American history.
The former intelligence analyst also faces 15 additional counts and military authorities would have to decide whether to press those charges.
The seven counts would carry a maximum punishment of 16 years in prison, the judge said at a pre-trial hearing at Fort Meade, Maryland, north of the US capital.
The plea proposal from Manning would allow him to admit responsibility for leaking a trove of military intelligence logs and State Department cables, though not for every offense claimed by the government.
Under the proposal, Manning would not face the grave charge of “aiding the enemy” which could send him to prison for life.
The decision came on the third day of a six-day pre-trial hearing, in which the defense is arguing for the case to be dismissed in its entirety due to alleged illegal punishment during Manning’s detention in 2010 to 2011 in Quantico, Virginia.
Manning is expected to take the stand for the first time this week to testify about his harsh detention conditions at Quantico, in which he was held in a solitary cell for at least 23 hours a day and ordered to strip at night.
US military judge accepts terms for Manning's plea
