Prosecutors push for 17-year sentence for Pentagon leaker Jack Teixeira

A low-level airman, Teixeira pleaded blameworthy to sharing hundreds of classified files connected the societal media tract Discord.

United States prosecutors volition question a 17-year situation word for an airman who admitted to leaking hundreds of highly classified subject documents astir the Ukraine warfare and different nationalist information secrets.

In a sentencing memorandum filed earlier this week, prosecutors said the crime by Jack Teixeira, 22, a subordinate of the Massachusetts Air National Guard, amounted to 1 of the astir “consequential violations of the Espionage Act successful American history”.

“The suspect took an oath to support the United States and to support its secrets — secrets that are captious to US nationalist information and the carnal information of Americans serving overseas,” prosecutors wrote. “Teixeira violated his oath, astir each day, for implicit a year.”

The classified records were shared past twelvemonth by Teixeira connected the messaging app Discord. Authorities accidental Teixeira began by typing retired copies that helium past published online. Later, helium photographed the files, immoderate of which bore “SECRET” and “TOP SECRET” markings.

Mossad details

The leaked documents held highly classified accusation connected allies and adversaries, with details ranging from unit movements successful Ukraine to quality astir Israel’s Mossad spy agency.

The breach embarrassed the Pentagon and forced the medication of President Joe Biden to scramble to effort to incorporate the diplomatic and subject fallout.

Unlike different leakers of US subject secrets, Teixeira’s lawyers accidental helium had nary governmental extremity and was not a spy moving for a overseas government.

The lawyers are pushing for a lighter condemnation of 11 years, saying their client, who pleaded blameworthy successful March, “made a unspeakable decision” but ne'er meant to harm the US.

“Instead, his intent was to amended his friends astir satellite events to marque definite they were not misled by misinformation,” said the lawyers. They besides noted that Teixeira has autism and has ne'er been convicted of a transgression before.

“Jack has thoroughly accepted work for the wrongfulness of his actions and stands acceptable to judge immoderate punishment indispensable present beryllium imposed,” wrote Teixeira’s lawyers.

Prosecutors countered that Teixeira, who held a top-secret information clearance portion moving successful cyberdefence operations, does not endure from an intelligence disablement that prevents him from knowing close from wrong. They argued that Teixeira’s post-arrest diagnosis arsenic having “mild, high-functioning” autism “is of questionable relevance successful these proceedings”.

“Whatever developmental oregon societal difficulties Teixeira whitethorn person experienced, his determination to illegally disclose nationalist defence accusation and enactment the lives of different radical astatine hazard was a volitional prime that helium made knowingly, wilfully, and with afloat consciousness of the consequences clip and clip again,” prosecutors wrote.

Teixeira, who is scheduled to beryllium sentenced connected November 12, cannot beryllium charged with further Espionage Act violations nether the presumption of his blameworthy plea.

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Al Jazeera and quality agencies