Chelsea Manning was barred from using the prison gym, library or outdoor areas for three weeks after she was found guilty Tuesday of violating prison rules, including possessing toothpaste with an expired date.
Manning, a former Army intelligence analyst serving 35 years in a military prison at Ft. Leavenworth, Kansas, for providing secret documents to WikiLeaks, was convicted of four infractions during a disciplinary hearing, her lawyer, ACLU attorney Chase Strangio, confirmed to The Huffington Post.
Manning was found guilty of "medicine misuse" for possessing an expired tube of toothpaste, and "prohibited property" for having the Vanity Fair issue with Caitlyn Jenner on the cover, in addition to other reading material. She faced possible solitary confinement for the infractions, but was ultimately stripped of recreational privileges for 21 days.
Manning tweeted about the charges Tuesday:
"The fact that Chelsea had to face today's four-hour Disciplinary Board without counsel and will now be punished for daring to share her voice sets a concerning precedent for the remaining decades of her incarceration," Strangio said in an emailed statement. "No one should have to face the lingering threat of solitary confinement for reading and writing about the conditions we encounter in the world. Chelsea's voice is critical to our public discourse about government accountability and trans Justice and we can only preserve it if we stay vigilant in our advocacy on her behalf."
Earlier Tuesday, Manning's supporters delivered a petition to Army officials in Washington, urging the military to drop the charges and "stop harassing" Manning. The petition, launched last week, garnered more than 100,000 signatures.
"Chelsea Manning is a hero and the whole world is watching the U.S. government’s deplorable treatment of whistleblowers, transgender people, and prison inmates in general," Evan Greer of Fight for the Future said in a statement prior to Tuesday's hearing.
An Army spokesperson declined to comment.