Court docs: Fed gov does not plan to seek death penalty for man indicted on espionage charges

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) -- Three months after a Colorado Springs man was indicted on six federal charges for allegedly disseminating classified materials to what he believed was Russia, court documents allege that the federal government will not seek the death penalty in the case.

30-year-old Jareh Dalke allegedly transmitted excerpts of three classified documents to an undercover FBI agent that he believed was a foreign government. One of those excerpts had a "Secret Level" clearance, and two were labeled "Top Secret," according to the criminal complaint filed in federal court on October 6.

Now, court documents filed in the case by Dalke's defense attorneys in late November say "The government does not intend to seek the death penalty if Mr. Dalke is convicted." However, "they add that under certain circumstances, the statute may arguably allow the government to do so."

Dalke was an employee with the National Security Agency (NSA) where he served as an Information Systems Security Designer from June 6, 2022, to July 1, 2022. Court documents allege that Dalke was in thousands of dollars of debt in the months leading up to the dissemination of national security materials.

On October 11, a federal judge ordered Dalke permanent detention in federal prison while the court process plays out. Below are the reasons the judge gave for denying Dalke bail:

"(1) The Defendant signed a lifetime NDA with the government (and related non-disclosure statements) which he failed to honor. That document warned violating its terms would subject him to criminal sanctions, including the very charges he now faces. The Court is not convinced the Defendant would honor its conditions of release any better.

(2) The number of fraudulent federal identification documents, credentials, and badges located in the Defendant’s home after a lawful search enhances the danger posed.

(3) The Defendant’s knowledge of the cybersecurity "tradecraft," which is supported by his education, training and background.

(4) The Defendant’s re-application for employment with the NSA purportedly to obtain additional classified materials for dissemination to foreign interests.

In addition, the Defendant faces six counts involving a lifetime sentence. The lengthy period of incarceration he faces, coupled with his dire financial circumstances which spawned (at least in part) his underlying conduct, enhances his risk of flight. And his ideology, which includes an expressed sympathy for the Russian Federation and a desire to harm the United States, weighs on both factors."

On November 25, Dalke's defense attorney petitioned the court to declare the case "complex," which would elongate the time before the case can go to trial. The judge signed off on that request.

The defense cited the voluminous amount of evidence in the case and needing to get proper security clearances to even view the evidence as their reasons why.

"Between October 26 and November 7, 2022, the government produced 9,043 pages and
295 media files containing unclassified and/or redacted discovery material. Counsel has begun but
not yet completed the review of this material. On November 22, 2022, the government produced
an additional 526 pages of discovery material," Dalke's attorneys said in court documents.

Due to the sensitive nature of the case, the court also appointed a "Classified Information Security Officer" or “CISO” to keep an eye on the case.

Dalke will be back in court in Denver on February 10. Court documents say at that hearing both the prosecution and defense will update the judge on their security clearances and how much additional time they need to review the evidence in the case. A trial date has not been set.