Chelsea Manning Asks Obama For Release Before Trump Takes Office

Chelsea Manning is hoping to get out of prison before Barack Obama gets out of office. Manning, famous for slipping military and other secret documents to WikiLeaks in 2010, filed an official petition for clemency on November 10 in a letter forwarded to the New York Times. Manning hopes that this final attempt will be successful after serving a portion of her 35-year sentence handed down in 2013, when Manning was still known as "Bradley." Since then, she's changed her name and won the right to transition, but has faced very harsh treatment for seemingly minor infractions. Manning's lawyers argue in the letter that she's already served more time than typical leakers and call on Obama to extend her the same leniency he has to other offenders. They write that Manning was under significant stress due to her gender dysphoria when she leaked the documents. Their argument also includes the stress placed on the judge in an extremely public trial, given that her leaks were the relatively unique and so wide-reaching. She was just 25 and a private-first-class when the court handed down her sentence. Obama may or may not feel compelled to comply, given that WikiLeaks played an extremely active role in sabotaging the candidacy of his chosen successor. Read her lawyers' letter here. Related Video: