David McBride Leaves Jail, Talks About His Experience
By Jade Toomey
Topic: Courts
Former military lawyer David McBride was given parole after serving over two years in a Canberra prison.
David McBride did not plan to talk to reporters when he left prison after more than two years.
But he had a lot to say from the passenger seat of his car, driven by family members.
He shared news of his lung cancer diagnosis, thanked the attorney-general, and appreciated supporters who sent him letters.
He also thanked his fellow prisoners and the prison staff for making his time in prison positive.
David McBride took his dog Jake to court during his trial.
McBride said he looks forward to seeing his dog and daughters.
But what he didn't say was interesting.
A journalist asked if he had a message for whistleblowers.
McBride said he would talk about those things later.
He believes you don't need to be perfect to be a whistleblower.
David McBride gave a journalist classified military documents, which had big consequences.
McBride's battle started when he gave secret documents to a journalist to expose issues with special forces soldiers.
But the story that came out was different from what McBride expected.
McBride told police that the journalist did a different story than he wanted.
This shows how complex David McBride's situation is.
David Shoebridge is one of McBride's biggest supporters.
Shoebridge said you don't need to be perfect to be a whistleblower.
You don't need perfect motivations to be a whistleblower.
McBride pleaded guilty to charges and was sentenced to five years and eight months in prison.
He was the first person imprisoned for Australia's alleged war crimes in Afghanistan.
Other people, like Ben Roberts-Smith, are facing charges for war crimes.
Whistleblower cases can have uncertain outcomes.
Andrew Wilkie, a former intelligence officer, says McBride should not have been jailed.
Wilkie said the information McBride provided was in the public interest.
Before being a politician, Wilkie blew the whistle on faulty intelligence and resigned.
He was never jailed.
Neither was Witness K, who was convicted of conspiring to reveal classified information.
Witness K got a suspended sentence.
Bernard Collaery was accused of conspiring with Witness K, but the case was dropped.
Collaery's case was dropped after the attorney-general intervened.
Richard Boyle exposed the tax office for unethical tactics and was charged.
Boyle pleaded guilty but got a good behavior bond.
Whistleblower cases can be unpredictable, which deters people from sharing information.
McBride's supporters say whistleblower protections need to be updated.
Without changes, the same situation could happen again.
Senator Shoebridge says it starts with a whistleblower commission.
The government is considering a Whistleblower Ombudsman.
Plans for a Whistleblower Protection Authority have stalled.
McBride's public calls for reform may push the government to act.
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