© AFP Photo / Mark WilsonUS Army Private First Class Bradley Manning is escorted out of a military court facility during the sentencing phase of his trial in Fort Meade, Maryland.
"Early next week I will file a request to the President for the pardon of Private Manning, or at least [ask to] commute his sentence," Manning's lead attorney, David Coombs, said during a Wednesday news conference.
Coombs read a statement from Manning, who was sentenced to 35 years in prison for leaking US intelligence to WikiLeaks.
In the letter, Manning says that he leaked the information out of love for his country, and that if the President denies him a pardon "he will serve [his] time knowing that sometimes you have to pay a high price."
In the statement voiced by the counsel, Manning quoted American historian and social activist Howard Zinn, saying, "there is not a flag large enough to cover the shame of killing innocent people."
"We did everything to make sure he got a fair trial, but I don't think the public is going to perceive it as such," added Manning's attorney.
Manning handed over more than 700,000 Iraq and Afghanistan battlefield reports and State Department diplomatic cables to WikiLeaks while working as an intelligence analyst in Iraq in 2010.
"You didn't have to be a person who was against the war to see that something was wrong," said Coombs, referring to the leaked 'Collateral Murder' video, which shows a US helicopter attack in Baghdad. At least nine non-combatants were killed in the incident, including a Reuters news photographer and his driver.
"The winner in this case is [the] public, because they got information they needed," the attorney acknowledged, adding that Manning will be eligible for parole in seven years and can go before a clemency board in as early as three years.
In July, the soldier was convicted on 20 charges, including espionage, theft, and violating computer regulations. However, Manning was found not guilty of the most serious charge, aiding the enemy, which gave him the possibility of parole.
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