Army Pfc. Bradley Manning is helped out of a security vehicle as he arrives at a courthouse at Fort Meade, Md., on Friday, July 26, 2013.FORT MEADE, Md. - The closing arguments in the court-martial of Pfc. Bradley Manning have finished and the judge says she will start deliberating Friday night.
Judge Col. Denise Lind said she will give the public one day's notice before she decides on the 21 charges the former intelligence analyst faces. The most serious of them is aiding the enemy, which carries a potential life sentence in prison.
Earlier Friday, defense attorney David Coombs told the judge Manning was negligent in releasing classified secrets to WikiLeaks, but the soldier did not know al-Qaida would see the material.
The prosecution has said Manning knew al-Qaida and other enemies would see the material and he leaked it so that he could bask in worldwide attention as a whistleblower.