Pentagon leak suspect Jack Teixeira to remain in jail before trial after Guardsman slammed for ‘putting US at risk’
A JUDGE has granted the government’s motion to keep accused Pentagon leaker Jack Teixeira detained as he awaits trial.
The ruling was made in favor of the prosecution at a court hearing on Friday after a judge said Teixeira, a former Air National Guardsman, was a “severe risk” to obstruct justice and had an “unhealthy fixation” with firearms.
Judge David Hennessy said there was “a profound breach of the defendant’s word that he would protect information related to the security of the United States” after allegedly releasing classified Pentagon docs to a Discord gaming group.
“Who did he put at risk? I mean, you could make a list as long as a phone book,” Hennessy added.
The judge also raised concerns about the 21-year-old’s “unhealthy fixation” with weapons based on Teixeira’s writing – factors he said he couldn’t ignore.
“Given the publicity of this case, foreign governments know that the defendant was disloyal to the United States and that he is facing a long jail sentence,” the judge said.
“None of those things are speculative or exaggerated.”
Teixeira will be held without bail as his case moves along.
Friday’s ruling comes after the prosecution revealed at a court hearing last month that Teixeira had been caught by military superiors in the past for taking notes on classified documents.
Hennessy explained that Teixeira was confronted on two separate occasions about doing so prior to his April 13 arrest.
The 21-year-old has been in jail since that time on charges of unauthorized retention and transmission of classified national defense information under the Espionage Act.
He was accused of using his military clearance to search about the mass shootings in Las Vegas, Mandalay Bay, and Uvalde.
Teixeira then allegedly shared the classified information with a group on Discord of about 20 to 30 young men.
State prosecutor Nadine Pellegrini argued during last month’s hearing that the 21-year-old “liked being the gatekeeper, the giver of information.”
The prosecutor added that Teixeira allegedly “became a one-stop shop for people who wanted access to that which they shouldn’t.”
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