Former U.S. Army intelligence analyst Bradley Manning, now Chelsea Manning, has been barred entry into Canada due to her criminal record, according to a letter she posted on Twitter.
“[S]o, i guess canada has permanently banned me ?” Manning wrote on Twitter. “[D]enied entry b/c of convictions similar to ‘treason’ offense.”
(Twitter)
According to the letter, Manning is “inadmissible on grounds of serious criminality for having been convicted of an offense outside Canada that, if committed in Canada, would constitute an [offense] under the Act of Parliament punishable by a maximum term of imprisonment of at least 10 years.”
Manning told Reuters she drove to the Canadian border in Lacolle, Quebec, on Thursday planning to go on vacation in Montreal and Vancouver. Manning said she was stopped and detained overnight before being given the report saying she was barred entry into Canada.
Manning said on Twitter that she will challenge the ruling.
“[W]ill be challenging denial of entry at a Canadian ‘admissibility hearing’ in the future (no date yet),” Manning wrote, adding that the law cited by Canada is not similar to the U.S. laws she was convicted under.
(Twitter)
The offenses Manning was convicted under – the Espionage Act – “would equate to an indictable [offense], namely Treason” if the offense was committed in Canada.
On July 30, 2013, Manning was convicted of 17 of the 22 charges she faced, including six violations of the Espionage Act.
In 2010, then U.S. Army intelligence analyst Bradley Manning leaked more than 700,000 classified documents to WikiLeaks, making it the largest leak in United States history. Manning was sentenced to 35 years in prison, but her sentence was commuted by former President Barack Obama. Manning was released from prison in May.
