Brian Klein
10.2K posts
@brianeklein
High-stakes criminal and regulatory defense and civil litigation throughout the US (often Fintech and Cybersecurity); Partner, Waymaker LLP
My name is Roman Storm, and I am one of the founders of Tornado Cash, a non-custodial privacy protocol. I am being prosecuted for writing open-source code that enables private crypto transactions in a completely non-custodial manner. This prosecution represents a terrifying criminalization of privacy. The charges against me threaten to criminalize software development itself. If successful, the implications could extend far beyond the crypto industry, impacting every software developer. I face up to 45 years in prison on charges including operating an unlicensed money-transmitting business, conspiracy to commit money laundering, and sanctions evasion. This case has already had a chilling effect on developers working on software tools. Recently, a developer filed a lawsuit against the DOJ, seeking relief because my case has made them fearful of releasing new software. x.com/lewellenmichae… Additionally, there is significant confusion around the 1960 charge (operating an unlicensed money-transmitting business), as different government agencies have conflicting interpretations of the law. x.com/amandatums/sta… “This prosecution threatens to criminalize software development itself,” said Keri Axel of Waymaker LLP, my legal counsel. American entrepreneur and politician @VivekGRamaswamy commented, “You can’t go after the developers of code. What you actually need to do is go after individual bad actors who are breaking the laws that already exist.” x.com/benzingacrypto… Multiple amicus briefs have been filed in support of my defense by the DeFi Education Fund (@fund_defi), Coin Center (@coincenter), and Blockchain Association (@BlockchainAssn): defieducationfund.org/_files/ugd/84b… coincenter.org/app/uploads/20… theblockchainassociation.org/wp-content/upl… The 5th Circuit Court has already ruled that Tornado Cash sanctions were unlawful: x.com/AlexanderFishe… However, the DOJ has dismissed this ruling as irrelevant: storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.usco… My trial is set for April 14, 2025.
