The Dighton man accused of leaking highly classified military secrets pleaded not guilty during a Worcester court appearance Wednesday.
The former Air National Guardsman from Massachusetts accused of leaking top secret military documents appeared in court Wednesday where he pleaded not guilty to the half dozen federal charges he's facing.
Jack Teixeira's arraignment comes about two months after he was arrested at his home in North Dighton, and nearly a week since a federal jury indicted him on six counts related to the alleged mishandling of classified military documents.
The 21-year-old appeared in a Worcester courtroom for about 15 minutes Wednesday in an orange jumpsuit, firmly responding "not guilty" to each of the six counts. He waved and smiled at his parents, who were present for the arraignment.
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Teixeira's family did not talk leaving court but later released a new statement, saying they remain as committed as ever and that their entire family continues to share "complete and unwavering support of Jack as he faces this matter."
"The important thing is Jack will now have his day in court. And as we move through this process, we are hopeful that Jack will be getting the fair and just treatment he deserves," the family said. "We realize there is a long road ahead, and we ask for your continued respect or our privacy during this difficult ordeal."
Teixeira is accused of misusing his top-secret clearance while working as an Air National Guardsman, by accessing classified information not related to his job — including sensitive military details about the war in Ukraine.
Investigators said he was posting that information on social media group chats since early last year.
Teixeira allegedly tried destroying evidence once he realized that he was being investigated, with prosecutors adding that his actions have endangered U.S. security.
The Associated Press reported that the breach exposed secrets involving the Russian war in Ukraine, the capabilities and geopolitical interests of other nations and other national security issues.
"There is no doubt the government takes it very seriously, and that is why you are seeing some additional charges," NBC10 Boston legal analyst Michael Coyne said. "The speed of which the indictments took place says that they are concerned about national security issues, it is an important case in that regard and they are moving very aggressively to bring the case forward."
Prosecutors and national security experts alike have questioned why and how Teixeira had access to such sensitive information dealing with national security considering he had been suspended in high school for comments made about guns and violence, and had been repeatedly denied a firearms license because of concerns raised by local police.
"I think he's in serious trouble," said Stephanie Siegmann, who prosecuted cases as a Navy JAG and was also the national security chief at the U.S. Attorney's office in Massachusetts. "He very much jeopardized national security."
Siegmann, who handled cases involving the mishandling of classified information, says she's surprised Teixeira's supervisors weren't watching him more closely even as red flags were raised.
"They saw him taking notes," she said. "They saw him taking pictures, they saw him looking at things he shouldn't have been looking at, that he had no need to know."
Siegmann, a partner at Boston law firm Hinckley Allen, says obstruction charges are likely to be added to the case down the road.
She says Teixeira's alleged actions could prove detrimental to the U.S. government.
"We count on foreign allies in sharing information with us," she said. "And if they don't believe we can secure or safeguard classified information, they'll be less likely to want to share that information in the future."
It's unclear what the motive was for the alleged crime, but Siegmann doesn't think Teixeira necessarily meant to help our enemies.
"He's in a gamer group where he's trying to show off to his friends as to 'Look how great I am,'" she said. "That appears to be the motivation."
The Department of Justice has noted that each charge of unauthorized retention and transmission of classified documents carries a sentence of up to 10 years, so, if convicted of all counts, Teixeira could face up to 60 years behind bars.
Teixeira's lawyers have repeatedly tried to get him released on bail, but he has continued to remain in custody with the judge in his case previously citing concerns about his access to guns and violent remarks he's allegedly made in the past.
During Wednesday's court hearing, Teixeira's attorneys asked the judge to reconsider his motion to detain him while awaiting trial, but the judge again denied that request.
"I think the enormity of the charges, being held pre-trial without bail, I think that all says that he should be, and likely is, seriously considering a plea, which nonetheless will require him to serve some years," Coyne said.
Teixeira has added an a new lawyer to his team who has security clearance, which the judge said would be necessary due to the amount of classified documents associated with this case. Prosecutors have until July 19 to hand off non-classified documents.
A status hearing is set for Wednesday, Aug. 9.
The Associated Press contributed to this report
