Skip to main content

FTX Founder’s Expert Witnesses Face Exclusion in Fraud Trial

FTX Founder's Expert Witnesses Face Exclusion in Fraud Trial

The U.S. Department of Justice filed a motion on Monday seeking to bar all seven of Sam Bankman-Fried’s proposed expert witnesses from testifying in the former FTX CEO’s upcoming fraud trial. Federal prosecutors cited issues with the witnesses’ reliability and accused them of improperly offering opinions on Bankman-Fried’s state of mind.

DOJ Seeks to Bar All Expert Witnesses in Former FTX CEO’s Fraud Trial

In the 39-page motion, the Department of Justice (DOJ) argued the witnesses’ opinions amounted to “an expert patina to inadmissible hearsay testimony about the defendant’s supposed lack of criminal knowledge or intent.” Prosecutors took issue with British barrister Lawrence Akka’s planned testimony interpreting FTX’s terms of service, saying it would confuse the jury and usurp the court’s role in instructing on the law.

The DOJ deemed Indiana University professor Bradley Smith’s proposed lecture on campaign finance laws unnecessary and irrelevant. The government also criticized the qualifications of financial services consultant Peter Vinella, noting his lack of crypto expertise. Further, prosecutors asserted that the expert disclosures for technologist Thomas Bishop and metadata specialist Brian Kim were deficient, providing only vague descriptions rather than specific opinions.

The DOJ contended that software engineer Joseph Pimbley’s testimony regarding problems with FTX’s internal systems was irrelevant. Stanford University professor Andrew Di Wu’s proposed cryptocurrency market overview was also deemed unnecessary, with prosecutors arguing fact witnesses could provide such background.

Overall, the DOJ motion argued that Sam Bankman-Fried‘s slate of experts would confuse jurors and offer testimony improperly aimed at suggesting the FTX founder lacked criminal intent. Prosecutors asked the court to preclude the witnesses or at minimum hold pre-trial Daubert hearings evaluating their expertise. Jury selection for Bankman-Fried’s trial on fraud and conspiracy charges is slated to begin in October.

What do you think about the DOJ’s argument to bar Bankman-Fried’s group of experts? Share your thoughts and opinions about this subject in the comments section below.



from Bitcoin News https://ift.tt/wA9GYOU
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Ripple Donates $300K to Support Nepal and Tibet Flood Relief

Ripple is donating $300,000 to World Central Kitchen and Mercy Corps following devastating floods in Nepal and Tibet. The funding will support emergency meals, clean-water access, and sanitation efforts in affected communities. Ripple Directs $300K to Emergency Assistance A $300,000 Ripple donation will support emergency food, water, and sanitation assistance after destructive flooding struck Nepal […] from Bitcoin News https://ift.tt/b60CqSG
Post a Comment
Read more

$13T Asset Manager Charles Schwab Adds 3 Altcoins to Its Crypto Push

There’s been a great deal of institutional interest in crypto assets over the last two years, and on Thursday, the $13 trillion asset manager Charles Schwab announced that it is expanding its digital asset listings beyond bitcoin and ethereum. According to the announcement, solana (SOL), avalanche (AVAX), and chainlink (LINK) accessibility will be added to […] from Bitcoin News https://ift.tt/b1dBkM5
Post a Comment
Read more

Glassnode and Ark Invest Introduce ‘Cointime Economics’ — A New Model to Measure Bitcoin’s Value

Researchers from Glassnode and Ark Invest have collaborated to develop a new economic model for analyzing Bitcoin’s onchain metrics called “Cointime Economics.” The framework offers an alternative way to measure the economic activity and value of bitcoin based on “coinblocks” rather than the standard accounting method of unspent transaction outputs, or UTXOs. Cointime Economics: A Unique Framework for Analyzing Bitcoin The Cointime Economics white paper explains that coinblocks are the product of the number of bitcoin, or BTC , multiplied by the number of blocks they are held without moving. For instance, ten bitcoins held for ten blocks would equal 100 coinblocks. This method aims to capture the real economic weight and importance of each bitcoin based on the time it remains dormant. The longer a bitcoin is unmoved, the higher its cointime and implied economic significance. Cointime Economics introduces metrics such as coinblocks created, destroyed, and stored to describe Bitcoi...
Post a Comment
Read more