David Petraeus, United States’ former top spy and four-star army general, has pleaded guilty to a single misdemeanour count of unauthorized removal and retention of classified information.
As commander of US forces in Afghanistan in August 2011, Petraeus allowed Paula Broadwell, his mistress and biographer, to gain access to Black Books — eight notebooks that contained highly classified national defence information, code words, identities of covert officers, war plans and classified and unclassified notes that he took during official meetings, conferences, and briefings as source material for his biography – All In: The Education of General David Petraeus. He also lied about the mishandling of classified information when FBI agents questioned him in October 2012.
Prosecutors have imposed a fine of $40,000 on him and have refrained from charging him with more serious crimes like obstruction of justice and lying to FBI. He will receive probation for two years instead of harsher and more embarrassing punishment like prison time.
The FBI uncovered the illicit Petraeus-Broadwell affair in 2012 while investigating threatening emails that Broadwell had sent to Jill Kelley, Petraeus’ friend. An examination of Broadwell’s computer revealed that Petraeus had shared classified information with her. Petraeus had to resign in November 2012 after the extra-marital affair and the leak was exposed to the public.
Lawmakers defended the lenient treatment given to the former CIA director in comparison to others accused of improper disclosures of classified information.
“This man has suffered enough. People aren’t perfect. He made a mistake. He lost his job as CIA director because of it. I mean, how much do you want to punish somebody? It’s done. It’s over. He’s retired. He’s lost his job. How much does government want?” asked Senator Dianne Feinstein, former chairwoman of the Senate Intelligence Committee.
“I believe it is time to consider this matter closed. At a time of grave security challenges around the world, I hope that Petraeus will continue to provide his outstanding service and leadership to our nation, as he has throughout his distinguished career,” Senator John McCain, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said in a statement.
“The successes for which he was once hailed have proven transitory and incomplete,” Andrew Bacevich, a retired Army officer and Boston University professor, felt Petraeus’ guilty plea had damaged his reputation.
Ironically, in a message to CIA employees in January 2012, Petraeus had said, “Unauthorized disclosures of any sort … betray the public trust, our country and our colleagues. When we joined this organization, we swore to safeguard classified information; those oaths stay with us for life”.
In another message to CIA employees in October 2012, praising the conviction of John Kiriakou, a former CIA analyst who pleaded guilty for violating the Intelligence Identities Protection Act, Petraeus had said, “Oaths do matter, and there are indeed consequences for those who believe they are above the laws that protect our fellow officers and enable American intelligence agencies to operate with the requisite degree of secrecy”.
Kiriakou, who was recently released from federal prison, told VICE News, “Petraeus shouldn’t have been charged in the first place. There was no criminal intent and there was no harm to the national security just as in my case”. He served 30 months in prison for a similar crime in 2012.
Chelsea Manning, an Army officer, is serving 35 years for leaking classified information. Jeffrey Sterling, a former CIA officer, is convicted of leaking classified information and faces sentencing in April. Edward Snowden, a former NSA analyst, leaked classified information to media in 2013 and was charged with two counts of violating the Espionage Act and theft of government property, punishable by up to 30 years in prison. Why was David Petraeus, who leaked crucial top secrets and classified information of national importance, given such VIP treatment?
