Chelsea Manning.
Photo: AP
Chelsea Manning was released from U.S. Disciplinary Barracks at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, today after seven years of incarceration. The former Army Intelligence analyst was originally sentenced to 35 years for leaking approximately 750,000 secret documents to WikiLeaks in 2010, and disrupting international diplomacy. Her sentence was commuted in January by Barack Obama.
Manning said in a statement to ABC News:
I appreciate the wonderful support that I have received from so many people across the world over these past years. As I rebuild my life, I remind myself not to relive the past. The past will always affect me and I will keep that in mind while remembering that how it played out is only my starting point, not my final destination.”
Manning, who came out as transgender soon after sentencing and began hormone therapy in prison, posted her “first steps to freedom” on Instagram on Wednesday morning.
