MANNING, Phillip John
B1018763, Gunner, Royal Regiment of New Zealand Artillery
CITATIONNew Zealand Distinguished Service DecorationNew Year's Honours List 2009Gunner MANNING was on sentry duty at the New Zealand Provincial Reconstruction Team site in Bamyan on 26 March 2008 when analtercation developed between a member of the Afghan National Police, who was also on sentry duty and another policeman from theRegional Training Centre (RTC) who was attempting to enter the compound together with an unauthorised Afghani soldier. After initiallyobserving the verbal dispute between the two policeman, he then intervened after the policeman who was attempting to gain admissionsnatched the Afghani guard’s radio and the guard had retaliated by striking the other policeman with an AK magazine. He placed himselfbetween the two protagonists and disarmed the RTC policeman of rocks, with which he was attempting to assault the guard. He intervenedagain after the RTC policeman drew his pistol and aimed it at the guard, by disarming him in a calm and deliberate manner in order to resolvethe situation.KNOWN AWARDS
New Zealand Distinguished Service Decoration
New Zealand Operational Service Medal
New Zealand General Service Medal Afghanistan (Primary)
NATO Medal
NOTES
Born 1987 New Zealand
Died
NEWS ITEM
Friday 13 February 2015
A decorated soldier guilty of eight sex-related charges involving recruits is staring down the barrel of a rank reduction. The reduction was one of of the proposed punishments put forward by both the prosecution and defence at the court martial of Bombardier Phillip Manning at Linton Military Camp today.
Manning, 27, pleaded guilty to six of 13 sex-related charges on the first day of his court martial on Monday. Yesterday, he was found guilty of two of the seven other charges against him, which included a charge of indecent assault, and a charge of doing an act likely to prejudice service discipline, which was laid in the alternative to one of the sexual violation charges.However, the panel found him not guilty on the remaining five charges, including sexual violation and inducing a sexual connection by threat.The offences were alleged to have taken place at Waiouru Military Camp, between 2011 and 2012, involving three women who, at the time, were recruits on a course while Manning was their instructor. This morning, both the defence and prosecution gave sentencing submissions. A panel of five senior military members and Judge Charles Blackie have retired for deliberations. In the prosecutions sentencing submission, Captain Matt McGrath said due to the gravity of the offending, including the number of incidents and the number of victims, the matter must be taken seriously.Manning had flouted the rules, over an extended period of time with numerous victims and breached his position of authority and the trust that was placed in him. Among the sentencing and punishments put forward by McGrath was a reduction to the rank of gunner, a period of service detention and dismissal from the New Zealand Defence Force.However, McGrath did note Manning's early guilty plea in relation to a number of the offences and his previous service record. "It would be inappropriate for Bombardier Manning to keep his rank," McGrath said."It would intolerable for him to hold command."Defence lawyer Paul Murray agreed with a rank reduction, saying it "goes without saying".However, Murray questioned if a dismissal was warranted, especially considering Manning has already expressed a desire to leave the Defence Force, and anything more severe, such as a term of imprisonment, was not justified.QManning had a sound service history, highlighted in him receiving a Distinguished Service Decoration in the 2009 New Year's Honours for keeping a cool head during an incident while serving in Afghanistan.
Manning was a gunner on the 11th rotation of the New Zealand Provincial Reconstruction Team and was on sentry duty when he intervened in an altercation between a member of the Afghan National Police and another policeman from the Regional Training Centre who was attempting to bring an unauthorised Afghan soldier into the compound. However, the offending was "out of character" for Manning and at the "low-to-moderate level" of indecent assault charges."Of course what he's done and what will follow is a significant fall from grace for him," Murray said. "There has been harm caused, that's squarely acknowledged by Bombardier Manning and he accepts that."Bombardier Manning is genuinely remorseful and plainly accepts what he did was wrong ... he's willing to make amends."Taking into account the mitigating personal factors, Murray said the starting point for punishment should be lowered from dismissal to something lesser.Sentencing should be made this afternoon.
THE PRO PATRIA PROJECT
