This is one for your WikiLeaks fan fic: A lawyer for Private Bradley Manning says his client was stripped naked and left in his prison cell in the the Marine brig in Quantico, Virginia, without clothes for seven hours on Wednesday. And if that wasn’t bad enough, before Manning was allowed to get dressed, he was forced to stand naked outside his cell while guards inspected the space. “This type of degrading treatment is inexcusable and without justification,” said Manning’s lawyer David E. Coombs. “It is an embarrassment to our military justice system and should not be tolerated. Pfc. Manning has been told that the same thing will happen to him again tonight. No other detainee at the brig is forced to endure this type of isolation and humiliation.” First Lieutenant Brian Villiard, a Marine spokesman, said that the action wasn’t punitive but declined to comment on what motivated the naked episode.

It hasn’t been a good week for Manning. Earlier today, he was charged with 22 additional counts, including “aiding the enemy,” and is now possibly facing the death penalty.

Soldier in Leaks Case Was Jailed Naked, Lawyer Says [NYT]

