In a four-page written declaration, Winner told the court that 10 armed, male FBI agents came to her house with a warrant to search the premises and her person. In the Tuesday filing, Winner described, for the first time in her own words, the events that transpired when the FBI raided her home in June. In the Justice Department’s June 5 complaint, an FBI agent claimed that when Winner was questioned at her house two days earlier, she voluntarily confessed to being the source of the leak. The Miranda rights argument made by her defense adds a potentially significant early wrinkle in what is almost sure to be a complex case. Winner’s case is widely seen as having enormous implications for both whistleblowers and the press. Her case is the first leak prosecution the Trump administration has brought under the Espionage Act, as part of a wider crackdown on leaks. Winner was denied bail shortly after her arrest and is currently in jail awaiting trial. First Look also contributed $50,000 in matching funds to the Stand With Reality campaign, which I co-founded.) (The Intercept’s parent company, First Look Media, has taken steps to provide independent support for Winner’s legal defense through the Press Freedom Defense Fund. Winner is accused of having leaked an NSA document that was the basis of a story published by The Intercept on June 5, though The Intercept has no knowledge of the source’s identity. “Because Winner was not read her Miranda rights prior to law enforcement questioning,” Winner’s lawyers said in a memo supporting their motion, “any statements elicited by law enforcement from Winner during the encounter must be suppressed, as should any evidence obtained as a result of those statements.” Winner’s lawyers are arguing that any alleged confession should be barred from a jury trial. Winner - the 25-year-old Air Force veteran and ex-National Security Administration contractor indicted under the Espionage Act for allegedly leaking a top-secret document - has accused the FBI of violating her Miranda rights. The delay will allow Winner’s lawyers and expert witnesses to acquire the required security clearances needed to access classified information the government may use against her in court.Ī potentially critical pretrial battle, however, is brewing right now, according to court documents filed Tuesday. At a court hearing on Wednesday, a federal judge agreed to delay accused leaker Reality Winner’s trial until March.
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