Manning’s Lawyer Sets Record Straight

David Coombs, the attorney for Private Bradley Manning, who stands accused of supplying confidential documents to WikiLeaks, has given new clarity to the circumstances of his client’s imprisonment. After days of piecemeal reports on the conditions of Manning’s incarceration while he awaits trial, which some have called inhumane—a claim the Pentagon says is “blatantly false”—Coombs posted to his blog with straight facts about Manning’s life behind bars. Coombs also issued a statement to The Daily Beast: “PFC Manning should be removed from maximum custody and from Prevention of Injury (POI) watch. His current conditions are more rigorous than are required to insure his presence at trial, and therefore constitute illegal pretrial punishment.” Coombs’ clarifying blog post comes a day after The Daily Beast reported on Manning’s incarceration.