Air Force veteran Reality Leigh Winner has been charged under the Espionage Act for leaking a report documenting cyber attacks upon U.S. election infrastructure. This report set off a wave of concern and scrutiny regarding the security of the upcoming 2018 elections, and has spurred federal, state, and local officials to strengthen the integrity of our democracy.

Despite the public benefit of the released information, Winner’s defense now faces onerous restrictions. So far, the court has ruled that the classified document and all related articles, including public media reports, are not admissible as evidence to the jury. This will effectively deny the jury an opportunity to not only understand the impact of the document, but the substance of the case itself. This significantly denies Ms. Winner a fair and open trial.

We ask the Department of Justice to allow the defense access to all of the evidence and relevant documents necessary for a fair trial.