 Editor in Chief Bill   | 23 Apr 2025 9:47 p.m. PST |
The former Army soldier pleaded guilty to providing sensitive military documents in exchange for about $42,000 USD Fox News: link |
 Legion 4  | 23 Apr 2025 10:56 p.m. PST |
I hope he likes Leavenworth … Cold as Hell in the Winter though. |
 ochoin | 23 Apr 2025 11:33 p.m. PST |
It is always surprising how relatively little money such people take in return for destroying their own lives. "Everyone has a price" (Sir Robert Walpole) – something I don't believe – but it is often a pittance. As my father used to say, "Apart from me & you, people are strange. And I'm not sure about you." |
 PzGeneral | 24 Apr 2025 4:42 a.m. PST |
And all he got was seven years? |
| Tortorella | 24 Apr 2025 5:19 a.m. PST |
This is a life in prison crime, imo. |
| ochoin | 24 Apr 2025 5:54 a.m. PST |
I have, of course, no sympathy. Betrayal is one of the most heinous crimes. |
| Jay R S | 24 Apr 2025 6:56 a.m. PST |
7 years is a very light sentence. |
| JMcCarroll | 24 Apr 2025 8:24 a.m. PST |
Well it sounds like the $42,000 USD bought him a good lawyer. |
| Shagnasty | 24 Apr 2025 9:28 a.m. PST |
What ever happened to the death penalty for treason? |
| Grattan54 | 24 Apr 2025 9:45 a.m. PST |
Does sound like a light sentence. Maybe there are reasons we are not aware of? |
| Oberlindes Sol LIC | 24 Apr 2025 10:13 a.m. PST |
He pled guilty, so the sentence and the crimes were agreed between the prosecution and the defense. The crimes, according to the article, were "conspiring to collect and transmit national defense information, unlawfully exporting controlled information to China, and accepting bribes in exchange for sensitive, non-public U.S. government information". Treason, by contrast, includes "only … levying War against [the United States], or … adhering to their Enemies, giving them Aid and Comfort." U.S. Constitution, Article III, sec. 3. I'm sure that there are Supreme Court cases defining what constitutes "levying war" and "adhering to their Enemies", and that probably doesn't include selling information at the level seen here. |
| Legion 4 | 24 Apr 2025 10:34 a.m. PST |
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| ochoin | 24 Apr 2025 3:47 p.m. PST |
I'm not sure how it works in the US but here not only can the defendant appeal his/her sentence but the prosecution can also. This happens from time to time when the sentence attached to a guilty verdict is seen as so low as to be "manifestly unfair". However, if the miscreant has done a plea deal, it makes sense he cops a lesser sentence. The seven years *is* IMO quite a long time to spend in gaol. The issue is when would parole be available? BTW I think the $42,000 USD would NOT buy him a "good lawyer" – clearly not enough – but I doubt any sensible person thinks he would be allowed to keep it. |
