FORT MEADE, Maryland – Lawyers for the Army intelligence analyst blamed for the biggest national security leak in American history rested their case Wednesday, with closing arguments ahead before Pfc. Bradley Manning learns whether he will face a court-martial.

The 24-year-old is accused of illegally downloading hundreds of thousands of U.S. war and diplomatic cables and sending the data to the WikiLeaks anti-secrecy website. The government says the breach rattled U.S. foreign relations and imperiled military and diplomatic sources.

The government wants Manning court-martialed on charges that include aiding the enemy. If convicted, he could face life in prison.

On Wednesday, Manning’s attorneys called only two witnesses in his defense: a sergeant who witnessed one of Manning’s fits of rage in Baghdad and a captain whom the private served under in Iraq.

Manning was part of a three-soldier crew working the night shift with computers connected to the military’s supposedly secure network for sharing classified information. But witnesses said soldiers routinely accessed music, movies and computer games as well.

“I remember thinking that was something we shouldn’t be so liberal about,” said Capt. Barclay Keay, who was in charge of a night shift that Manning worked for a few weeks in 2009.

Manning allegedly downloaded hundreds of thousands of State Department diplomatic cables onto a rewritable CD labeled “Lady Gaga” while lip-synching to her song “Telephone.”

Defense lawyers painted Manning as a troubled young man who shouldn’t have had access to classified material.

Keay’s impression of Manning was of a good soldier who “did good analytical work.” But Sgt. Daniel Padgett, another of Manning’s supervisors, recalled an incident when he sat down with Manning for a “counseling session” after the soldier was late for work.

“His demeanor changed,” Padgett testified. He said Manning stood up and overturned a table, spilling a radio and computer onto the floor. Padgett said he moved Manning away from a gun rack while someone else restrained him until he calmed down.

Prosecution witnesses said Manning was well trained in rules prohibiting release of classified information. Forensic computer experts testified that they had retraced his keyboard strokes as he downloaded secret State Department diplomatic cables and raw battlefield reports from Iraq and Afghanistan.

Adrian Lamo, a convicted hacker, said Manning confided to him in May 2010 that he was the leaker. Lamo told authorities.

After closing arguments, presiding officer Lt. Col. Paul Almanza will give his opinion of whether Manning should be court-martialed. Then a senior military officer will make the final decision. The process could take several weeks.