The judge has in its hands the future of Bradley Manning
A 53 year old woman holds in her hands the destiny of the accounts for the largest leak of government secrets in American history. Nothing more, nothing less.
This is Judge Denise Lind, one army colonel who has gained more and more notoriety since Bradley Manning, the accused WikiLeaks revelations confidential, said he preferred that his future decided by a single person and not a panel.
That future, after a process that has taken several tumbles from capturing Manning in May 2010, is to be defined: last week concluded the allegations and on Tuesday they expected the verdict of Lind.
Who is this judge who grew up in upstate New York, maintains a low profile and came to have such power?
"Really intense, very thorough"
The key word: intent
Bradley Manning
In recent days, the debate in court in Fort Meade has revolved around the intentions that Bradley Manning did by leaking information to WikiLeaks.
This is key to determining, ultimately, how long you spend in prison.
His defense team said he is an informant just worried about his country, so he gave the documents.
This is in line with a previous declaration of Manning, in which he said he wanted to promote a public debate on the military and foreign policy.
The prosecuting attorneys, however, are trying to define Manning as a traitor who sought fame. They rejected the idea that he was confused and was a naive person.
And they want to establish that Manning knew that any leak could end up in the hands of America's enemies.
This is the most controversial of the process and you can define Manning's future: whether he intended to "aiding the enemy".
A person who knows Lind is Lisa Schenck, associate dean for academic affairs at the law school of George Washington University (GWU) in the U.S. capital.
Schenck and Lind met in 1999 when both worked in the legal branch of military justice and found years later in the academic field, as Lind also teaches at GWU.
Schenck revised some cases Lind when he was in the court of appeals, read his thesis before it was published and now occasionally invites a speaker to one of his classes.
Based on this knowledge, Schenck not hesitate to say in conversation with BBC News that his colleague is "really intense, very meticulous and very smart."
"Definitely I can not think of any other judge who is better qualified to be in this case Denise Lind," he argues.
That preparation includes studying law at several universities and four years experience as a military judge in Europe, Iraq, Kuwait and Afghanistan, according to his university profile at GWU.
Before taking up the case against Manning, his most visible role was in the process against Colonel Terrence Lakin, who refused to travel to Afghanistan because he believed that President Barack Obama was not born in the United States and was therefore a major in illegitimate leader.
Lind, among other decisions, denied a request for Obama to testify and that his departure christening became part of the evidence.
"Favors" to the prosecution
But just as some describe the benefits of Lind, other opponents have become very visible.
Overall, we criticize their decisions in front of the case and difficulties in accessing the details.
In particular, opponents will question a very recent decision: a few days ago, Lind refused to dismiss the indictment main Manning of "aiding the enemy".
Denise Lind profile
So you see the profile of Denise Lind at George Washington University.
That fact Lind earned a strong critique of Amnesty International, which said it was a "travesty of justice".
Manning admitted and filter a large amount of classified material and faces a possible sentence of 20 years. But if found guilty of the charge of "aiding the enemy", could spend the rest of his life in custody.
Click Read more about this decision Lind
Michael Ratner, president emeritus of the Center for Constitutional Rights, which represents WikiLeaks and its founder, Julian Assange, is one of the most important critics of Lind.
Your organization even sued to process information, which according to some has been surrounded by a cloak of secrecy.
Ratner argues, in conversation with BBC World, that this "is not a judgment of truth" and doubts that have been right, although he admits that Lind has heard both sides.
The lawyer added that "in general, all that (Lind) has done and said about what constitutes a crime or if you need an intention to help the enemy has favored the prosecution".
Across the spectrum, however, is his colleague Schenck, who says Lind has been "fair" and "impartial".
Like everything surrounding the controversial and convoluted trial of Manning, is difficult to determine if someone is right. But one thing is certain: in the next few hours and with the media attention on his shoulders, the Colonel Denise Lind make a decision that many have been waiting for over three years.
