A judge in Kansas approved a name change for the Army private who made worldwide news by releasing hundreds of thousands of classified documents to the WikiLeaks website, USA Today reported.
“Today is an exciting day,” Chelsea Elizabeth Manning, formerly known as Bradley Edward Manning, said in a statement. “I’ve been working for months for this change, and waiting for years.” Manning—who has filed a grievance with the U.S. Disciplinary Barracks commander at Fort Leavenworth over the lack of a response to her request for comprehensive treatment for her gender identity disorder—added that the military claims it has developed a treatment plan for her.
Manning, convicted on 20 counts including six Espionage Act violations, is serving a 35-year prison sentence at Fort Leavenworth, Kan. The Army did not oppose the name change.