Former analyst who leaked sensitive drone details sentenced to nearly four years in prison

[Valin]

The Washington Examiner

Jerry Dunleavy, Justice Department Reporter & Mike Brest, Defense Reporter

July 27, 2021

A former intelligence analyst and Afghanistan war veteran was sentenced to nearly four years in prison after he pleaded guilty to one count of violating the Espionage Act by leaking classified information on the U.S. drone strike program to the media.

Daniel Hale, 33, was arrested in May 2019 for leaking extensively to an unnamed reporter, with charging documents easily identifying him as Jeremy Scahill of the Intercept, an outspoken critic of U.S. military activities overseas. Hale pleaded guilty in March.

U.S. District Judge Liam O'Grady sentenced Hale to 45 months in prison on Tuesday. The judge determined that Hale's actions went past his "courageous and principled" stance on drones, according to the Washington Post.

“You are not being prosecuted for speaking out about the drone program killing innocent people,” the judge said. “You could have been a whistleblower … without taking any of these documents.”

(Snip)