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BOSTON (WPRI) — The Massachusetts Air National Guardsman accused of leaking classified documents on a social media platform is asking a federal judge to provide another court-appointed attorney for his defense.
Jack Teixeira, 21, of Dighton, was charged in April with unauthorized transmission of defense materials and unauthorized retention and removal of classified documents.
At the time of his arrest, U.S. Magistrate Judge David Hennessy appointed a federal public defender to represent him after reviewing the defendant’s finances.
In a filing Friday, attorney Brendan Kelley, asked the court to provide another taxpayer-funded lawyer from the Criminal Justice Act Panel, which is a list of private attorneys a judge can appoint if a case meets certain criteria.
Kelley said in the filing the appointment of additional representation is important “because of the complexity and nature of this prosecution and the nature of the evidence and procedures involved.”
The lawyer would need to have “Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information” clearance according to the motion.
Teixeira was a cyber defense operations journeyman with the Air National Guard at the Otis Air National Guard Base on Cape Cod.
He’s accused of taking classified documents involving spy operations and related to the war in Ukraine and posting images of them on Discord, a social media platform used by gamers.
Teixeira has been held without bail since his arrest. In May, Judge Hennessy determined he should remain behind bars because of the large number of people Teixeira put at risk when he published the material.
As of his most recent hearing, he was being held at the Plymouth County Correctional Facility.
Tim White (twhite@wpri.com) is the Target 12 managing editor and chief investigative reporter at 12 News, and the host of Newsmakers. Connect with him on Twitter and Facebook.
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