Convicted WikiLeaks Source Bradley Manning Granted Name Change

The former US Army private responsible for the largest leak of classified material in U.S. history has been granted an official name change.

A Kansas judge allowed Bradley Edward Manning to change his name to Chelsea Elizabeth Manning in a Wednesday ruling.

Manning, who was convicted in July of stealing and disseminating 750,000 pages of documents and videos to WikiLeaks, is serving a 35-year prison term in a military prison in Fort Leavenworth.

Manning was found guilty of 20 of the 22 charges against her, including violations of the U.S. Espionage Act.

Manning, who identifies as female, announced her intent to live as a woman in August.

The former US soldier has been diagnosed by Army behavioral specialists as having gender identity disorder.

George Wright, an Army spokesman, explained that the court ruling would only result in a change of Manning's name on military records but the confinement status would remain unchanged.

Wright, as cited by the CNN, reminded that the U.S. Disciplinary Barracks was an all-male facility.

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