Matt DeHart is an American Army veteran and whistleblower. Per John Kiriakou, DeHart was charged with child pornography in addition to other counts; when DeHart’s attorney told the judge no discovery had ever been provided on those charges, the Justice Department conceded there actually was no child pornography evidence.[1] Kiriakou compares the tactic to the sex-crime allegations brought against Julian Assange, which were also eventually withdrawn, describing it as a pattern of character assassination used to separate whistleblowers from their natural allies.[1]
Kiriakou says what actually caused DeHart’s legal jeopardy was that at the first sign of trouble with the military, he fled to Canada; Canadian authorities sent him back to the United States, where he was held without bond because prosecutors argued he had already fled once and might do so again.[2]
Kiriakou says DeHart’s attorney reached out to him directly when DeHart was first arrested, aware of Kiriakou’s public writing on pedophiles, and told him DeHart needed his help and was no pedophile; that assurance was what led Kiriakou to look into the case and conclude DeHart had simply been lied about.[2]