Chelsea Manning Allowed to Formally Change Name – NBC News

The Army private convicted of funneling intelligence secrets to whistleblowing website WikiLeaks can legally change her name to Chelsea Elizabeth Manning, a judge ruled Wednesday.

Mannings private struggle to identify as a woman became public after she was sentenced to 35 years in prison last August for leaking more than 700,000 government files. Manning didnt attend the minute-long name-change hearing Wednesday, but said in a statement that it is an exciting day.

Leavenworth County District Judge David King wrote that Manning is entitled to the name change, and ordered that Mannings birth certificate be amended to reflect the new name, according to the petition obtained by NBC News. The soldier's given name was Bradley Edward Manning.

Hopefully todays name change, while so meaningful to me personally, can also raise awareness of the fact that we [transgender] people exist everywhere in America today, and that we ... must jump through hurdles every day just for being who we are, Manning wrote.

Manning, 26, is currently serving time at the Army prison at Fort Leavenworth in Kansas.

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While Mannings military records must also reflect the new name, Army officials arent forced to treat Manning as a woman, which means she wouldnt have to be transferred to a womens unit at another prison.

Mannings confinement status wouldnt necessarily change, Army spokesman George Wright told The Associated Press.

Likewise, the U.S. Disciplinary Barracks is a male-only facility and prisoners there are referred to by the title inmate, Wright said in a statement.

Manning wrote that while she struggled with her gender identity, she felt compelled to legally change her name through the courts. But she said she still needs the militarys help to get proper healthcare access.

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Chelsea Manning Allowed to Formally Change Name - NBC News