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Sam Bankman-Fried’s lawyer challenges US gov’t proposed jury questions

September 30, 2023 Coin Telegraph

Sam Bankman-Fried's lawyer asserts that the proposed questions already insinuate his guilt in fraud and money laundering.

The lawyer representing Sam Bankman-Fried, the former CEO of the now-defunct exchange FTX, has claimed that the proposed jury questions for the upcoming fraud trial might introduce bias and have the potential to elicit biased responses.

In a court filing on September 29, lawyer Mark Cohen, representing Bankman-Fried, contends that the jury questions presented by the US government for the upcoming trial contain loopholes that could result in an unfair trial for Bankman-Fried.

“The Government’s proposed voir dire discourages full disclosure from potential jurors, fails to elicit sufficient information to allow the defense to ascertain potential juror bias, and risks tainting the jury by presenting the allegations in a prejudicial manner.”

*Court filing in the United States Southern District of New York. Source: Court Listener*

Cohen stresses the importance of the court reminding potential jurors that Bankman-Fried is entitled to the presumption of innocence until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

He also argues that the language used in the jury selection questions already portrays a biased image, presuming Bankman-Fried's guilt in fraud and money laundering.

“In particular, by referring to “his fraud,” rather than “his alleged fraud” or simply “fraud,” the final sentence in paragraph 3 improperly suggests that fraud by Mr. Bankman-Fried is an established fact.”

Furthermore, Cohen argued that the court should use the voir dire proposed by Bankman-Fried.

On September 15, Cointelegraph reported that the US government opposed his proposed questions, declaring them unnecessary and time-consuming.

Specifically, it objects to the Bankman-Fried's questions concerning pretrial publicity, the effective altruism philosophical movement, political donations and lobbying, and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

Jury selection will commence on October 3, preceding the trial's start on October 4.

According to a recently released trial calendar, there will be 15 full trial days in October and another six in November.

Bankman-Fried has been serving pre-trial detention at the Metropolitan Detention Center since August 11.

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SBF’s lawyers unable to tap his parent’s phones to meet bail conditions

April 23, 2023 Coin Telegraph

Christian Everdell

The new cell phones purchased for Bankman-Fried's parents cannot "automatically photograph the device's users every five minutes as required by the Order," according to a recent court filing.

Sam Bankman-Fried’s legal team have requested a third extension on the enforcement of his revised bail conditions, citing difficulties in installing monitoring software on his parents cell phones to capture a photo of the user “every five minutes.”

In an April 19 court filing in the Southern District of New York, Sam Bankman-Fried’s lawyers, Mark Cohen and Christian Everdell, stated that they have successfully implemented “all of the bail conditions set forth in the Order,'' with the exception of monitoring the usage of Bankman-Fried’s parents’ cell phones. It was noted:

“We learned recently that the monitoring software installed on the new cellphones we purchased for Mr Bankman-Fried’s parents cannot, in fact, automatically photograph the device’s user every five minutes as required by the Order.”

Cohen and Everdell stated they were “optimistic” at the time of filing that they had found a solution to monitor the cell phones but needed the extra time to “conduct further tests on the monitoring software to confirm its capabilities.”

*April 19 court filing. Source: courtlistener.com*

The legal team requested until April 21 to find a solution, howeverat the time of writing there has been no evidence to suggest a solution has been found yet.

The lawyers requested in the meantime that Bankman-Fried’s parents be allowed to continue using “their existing cellphones” until a resolution is reached.

Speaking to Cointelegraph, Ken Gamble, executive chairman of private intelligence firm IFW Global, believes there is a conflict between the choice of phone model and the monitoring software being implemented.

He noted that certain newer phone models, are unable to “install the latest monitoring software” due to inherent security measures on the devices.

Gamble emphasized that the latest iPhones, for example, cannot have monitoring software implemented without actually “jailbreaking the device” first.

He suggested the solution may involve exploring alternative cellphones for Bankman-Fried’s parents that are compatible with the installation of the monitoring software, stating:

"This will take time, they have to get to the root of the technical issue, find the solution, potentially even make another application to the court for more time while they find the preferred phone.”

In recent times there has been significant concerns raised over Bankman-Fried’s access to cell phones.

Judge Kaplan highlighted that Bankman-Fried had a “garden of electronic devices” with access to the internet at his parents’ home.

Kaplan warned that there was “probable cause” to believe that Bankman-Fried was involved in attempted witness tampering.

It was reported on March 28 that Bankman-Fried’s parents consented to limit his access to their devices while also signing affidavits agreeing to not bring prohibited electronic devices into their home.

Kaplan previously proposed on March 4, that Bankman-Fried be prohibited from using smartphones, tablets, computers, and any video game platforms or devices that allow chat and voice communication.

The proposal said that Bankman-Fried’s communication should be limited to a “flip phone or other non-smartphone with either no internet capabilities or internet capabilities disabled.”

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Mark Cohen