More on Army private Manning Trial Lawyers Argument

FORT MEADE, Maryland (AP) -

By DAVID DISHNEAU and PAULINE JELINEK

Lawyers for the Army private charged in the biggest leak of classified information in U.S. history say he was influenced by his struggles with being a gay soldier as protesters rallied this weekend in his support on both coasts.

The military hearing continued Sunday to determine whether Pfc. Bradley Manning will stand trial at a court-martial for allegedly slipping a trove of government secrets to the anti-secrecy website WikiLeaks while working as an intelligence analyst in Iraq in 2009 and 2010. The release included Iraq and Afghanistan war logs, State Department cables and a military video of a 2007 American helicopter attack in Iraq that killed 11 men.

The Obama administration says the released information has threatened valuable military and diplomatic sources and strained America's relations with other governments. Manning's lawyers counter that much of the information that was classified by the Pentagon posed no risk.

The hearing began Friday at Fort Meade outside Washington and could run several more days. The Army says it may take several more weeks for the commander of the Military District off Washington to decide whether Manning will be court-martialed.

Maj. Gen. Michael Linnington may choose other courses, including administrative punishment or dismissal of the 22 counts against him, including aiding the enemy. He also could add more charges based on evidence produced at the hearing.

Manning, who turned 24 Saturday, could face life in prison if convicted.

More than 100 people gathered outside Fort Meade for a march in support of Manning Saturday, some holding signs declaring "Americans have the right to know. Free Bradley Manning" and "Blowing the whistle on war crimes is not a crime." In San Francisco, hundreds marched through downtown Saturday, chanting "Free Bradley Manning" and holding up signs demanding his release.

"Bradley Manning is my hero," said Scott Olsen, the Marine Corps veteran who was badly injured during a clash between police and Occupy Oakland protests in October and briefly addressed the crowd.

Gwen Winter, 69, of Oakland, carried a sign that said, "Bradley Manning working class hero."

"It's not only his right, it's his duty to expose war crimes," she said of Manning. "That's his duty to reveal the truth.”

Among the first issues to arise during weekend testimony was whether Manning's sexual orientation is relevant to the case against him. His attorneys maintained that his status as a homosexual in the military before the repeal of "don't ask, don't tell" contributed to mental and emotional problems that should have barred him from having access to sensitive material.

The defense revealed that Manning had written to one of his supervisors in Baghdad before his arrest, saying he was suffering from gender-identity disorder. He included a picture of himself dressed as a woman and talked about how it was affecting his ability to do his job and even think clearly.

Maj. Matthew Kemkes, one of Manning's lawyers, asked Special Agent Toni Graham, an Army criminal investigator, whether she had talked to people who believed Manning was gay or found evidence among his belongings relating to gender-identity disorder. The condition often is described as a mental diagnosis in which people believe they were born the wrong sex.

Graham said such questions were irrelevant to the investigation.

"We already knew before we arrived that Pfc. Manning was a homosexual," Graham said.

Prosecutors objected several times to the questions. Kemkes responded that if the government can argue that Manning intended to leak secrets, "what is going on in my client's mind is very important."

During cross-examination of Treasury Department Special Agent Troy Bettencourt, who investigated the case, defense attorney Capt. Paul Bouchard asked if he believed Manning's military leaders failed him, given his behavior such as overturning a table and throwing a chair in episodes of rage.

Bettencourt said that in hindsight, "I would like to think that had I been in the chain of command, I would have maybe done things differently. I would have been aware of everything we now know to prevent him from deploying - but that is with the benefit of hindsight."

Prosecutor Capt. Joe Morrow quickly asked Bettencourt if he believes people who have signed nondisclosure agreements, like Manning, "have an individual responsibility to safeguard classified information." Bettencourt replied, "Yes."

Special Agent Mark Mander, an Army computer crimes investigator, testified Saturday that he found an SD memory card containing classified information in a box of items belonging to Manning that was stored at his aunt Debra Van Alstyne's house in Potomac, Md. Mander didn't say what classified information was on the card.

One of Manning's commanders in Baghdad, Capt. Steven Lim, said Manning should have had his security clearance suspended because of his problems. Lim said the outbursts occurred before he arrived, and that when he learned of them after Manning's arrest, he was shocked. Lim said he was also unaware that Manning believed he was suffering from gender-identity disorder.

Manning's appearances over the last two days in the Fort Meade courtroom marked the first time he has been seen in public after 19 months in detention. The Oklahoma native comes to court in Army camouflage fatigues and wearing dark-rimmed glasses. Manning sat calmly in the courtroom Saturday without appearing to react to the testimony, even when centered on his troubled mental state and homosexuality. Manning listened intently and regularly took notes.

The case has spawned an international support network of people who believe the U.S. government has gone too far in seeking to punish Manning.