Trump Considers Pardoning Samourai Wallet Developer

[Forsyth Jones]

Trump is considering granting a presidential pardon to the developer of Samourai, stating that he is familiar with the case and would evaluate it days before the developer reports to prison.

It's worth remembering that Trump already pardoned Ross Ulbrich in January and CZ in October...

Good news for the devs of Samourai.

https://x.com/BitcoinMagazine/status/2000680350578594104
https://bitcoinmagazine.com/news/trump-to-consider-pardon-samourai-wallet
https://bitcoinmagazine.com/politics/why-trump-should-pardon-the-developers-of-bitcoins-non-custodial-samourai-wallet

[yhiaali3]

Trump may have personal motives, as he continues to claim that the Justice Department was used against him politically. This makes him more sympathetic to those he describes as victims of "politically motivated prosecutions," such as Ross Ulbricht, CZ, and now the Samurai wallet developer.

There may also be other reasons for this decision, such as community pressure. As I read, thousands of Bitcoin users signed petitions demanding clemency, arguing that developers shouldn't be held accountable for others' use of their software.

[zasad@]

I'll comment on this news very simply. Trump and the wallet developer are on different levels. If it benefits Trump and enhances his political reputation, he'll do it. After all, Trump doesn't need to coordinate this decision with anyone.
Just today, the developer must go to prison to serve his sentence.

[Lucius]

Trump may have personal motives, as he continues to claim that the Justice Department was used against him politically. This makes him more sympathetic to those he describes as victims of "politically motivated prosecutions," such as Ross Ulbricht, CZ, and now the Samurai wallet developer.

There may also be other reasons for this decision, such as community pressure. As I read, thousands of Bitcoin users signed petitions demanding clemency, arguing that developers shouldn't be held accountable for others' use of their software.

The man seems to enjoy challenging anything from the previous administration, and when it comes to pardons, he is very easy on the trigger. On the one hand, it is not bad because some people who do not deserve to be punished will be released from prison, but on the other hand, I cannot agree that he had any justification for around 1600 pardons for those who participated in the attack on the US Capitol, in which many police officers were injured and those who lost their lives.

When he did this, he clearly showed that he was siding with the bullies and murderers, which is not something any president should ever do.

[NotATether]

Good. Let's do this. Keonne and Bill don't deserve to spend years in prison for running a coinjoin coordinator.

[Forsyth Jones]

Trump may have personal motives, as he continues to claim that the Justice Department was used against him politically. This makes him more sympathetic to those he describes as victims of "politically motivated prosecutions," such as Ross Ulbricht, CZ, and now the Samurai wallet developer.

There may also be other reasons for this decision, such as community pressure. As I read, thousands of Bitcoin users signed petitions demanding clemency, arguing that developers shouldn't be held accountable for others' use of their software.

Regardless of whether Trump has a political interest in this, it's not right that the Samourai developers should be imprisoned for doing the obvious: developing a self-custody tool with some privacy features, a fundamental right that should be better defended.

I would be very happy to see the Samourai developers free, even if it benefits Trump politically, that's irrelevant at this moment. Nobody deserves to rot in prison for a victimless crime.

Good. Let's do this. Keonne and Bill don't deserve to spend years in prison for running a coinjoin coordinator.

Yeah, this whole process has nothing to do with legal matters, it's simply malicious people who like mass control and surveillance, enemies of privacy and surveillance, using the state apparatus to favor their own interests and not the interests of Americans and people who want greater privacy. They're simply terrified of the level of privacy that Bitcoin can offer, but they ignore the fact that fiat currencies are used for crime on a much larger scale.

This process is a legal mess from beginning to end and shouldn't even exist. I hope Trump doesn't go back on his word and grants a pardon.

[EarnOnVictor]

If there's something I cherish the most in the crypto world, it'd be the privacy and it's ability to try anonymity. This is why I almost liked the idea of mixing/blending/tumbling, but at the same time, the evil behind it is beyond what we can see or explain, and the victims we may never know (or link the flow to), are the major losers. That's sad!

However, Trump is Trump, he can do whatever he pleases to truncate justice, he is the US president, and he has the power. He had done many questionable things, and his cronies/proxies know how they get paid in the dark. He has been alleged of many unspeakable fraudulent activities, so I'm not surprised. He could be benefiting from many unspeakable things than we know. So, don't ever think Trump's favour is for free, he's a core businessman.

As for the Samouraiwallet creator, I blame those guys behind it. Mixers shouldn't conduct themselves in public the way they did. In fact, they should be so discreet and hard to find if they are going that lane, judging by the nature of their creation. Nothing of such can ever win the law of any land in AML fight.

[yhiaali3]

Trump may have personal motives, as he continues to claim that the Justice Department was used against him politically. This makes him more sympathetic to those he describes as victims of "politically motivated prosecutions," such as Ross Ulbricht, CZ, and now the Samurai wallet developer.

There may also be other reasons for this decision, such as community pressure. As I read, thousands of Bitcoin users signed petitions demanding clemency, arguing that developers shouldn't be held accountable for others' use of their software.

The man seems to enjoy challenging anything from the previous administration, and when it comes to pardons, he is very easy on the trigger. On the one hand, it is not bad because some people who do not deserve to be punished will be released from prison, but on the other hand, I cannot agree that he had any justification for around 1600 pardons for those who participated in the attack on the US Capitol, in which many police officers were injured and those who lost their lives.

When he did this, he clearly showed that he was siding with the bullies and murderers, which is not something any president should ever do.

Yes, Trump's policy on this matter has been very clear since his election campaign. Most of the pardons he granted were campaign promises, and these promises were likely part of a deliberate strategy to broaden his support base by targeting groups that feel persecuted or see themselves as outside the traditional system.

It doesn't surprise me that Trump's policy has been successful, but what does surprise me is that he fulfilled his campaign promises! Politicians usually don't keep their promises after winning!!😊 This is fortunate for the cryptocurrency community.

[Z-tight]

You can disagree with Trump, his policies and some of his previous presidential pardons, but i completely support this one and i would be glad if he actually pardons them. Samourai developers do not deserve any jail time for creating an open source software. Going after them was clearly an attack on privacy and developers who write similar code that is open source and promotes privacy. And it would be great if Mr President sets this right.

[Lucius]

~snip~
It doesn't surprise me that Trump's policy has been successful, but what does surprise me is that he fulfilled his campaign promises! Politicians usually don't keep their promises after winning!!😊 This is fortunate for the cryptocurrency community.

He promised a lot and fulfilled very little, if we are honest. Realistically, the damage he has done after one year of his insane rule is enormous, and I don't just mean the economic damage, but also the attitude towards his long-time allies, whom he mocks almost daily.

[aysha9853]

Trump already set a pattern with Ross and CZ so this does not surprise me, it feels more like a political move than a legal statement, still for Bitcoin devs this matters because the Samourai case scared a lot of people working on privacy tools.

[Z-tight]

still for Bitcoin devs this matters because the Samourai case scared a lot of people working on privacy tools.

Yeah it did and it set a very bad precedent. It is worrisome, because it simply means you can be sent to jail for creating a non-custodial service. And the doj can charge you for operating an unlicensed money transmitting business even when you never for one second controlled the funds of the users. This surely must have other developers of privacy-focused softwares looking over their shoulders and wondering if they are next in this manhunt.

[zasad@]

Trump already set a pattern with Ross and CZ so this does not surprise me, it feels more like a political move than a legal statement, still for Bitcoin devs this matters because the Samourai case scared a lot of people working on privacy tools.

Ha ha ha!  CZ was so generous with his contributions to the US budget and befriended Trump that he deserved a pardon. People like him should learn how to negotiate with governments.
Typically, US presidents issue pardons at the end of their presidency, but Trump has changed that tradition.