Roman Storm asks DeFi devs: Can you be sure DOJ won't charge you?

Roman Storm, a developer behind the Tornado Cash protocol, raises concerns about potential retroactive prosecution by the US Department of Justice (DOJ) aimed at decentralized finance (DeFi) developers. He posed a significant question to the open-source community regarding their confidence in not being charged by the DOJ as money service businesses for creating non-custodial protocols. Storm's remarks followed his recent legal challenges, where he was found guilty of operating an unlicensed money transmission business but acquitted on other charges. Legal discourse has emerged around the possibility of further prosecution against him despite the undecided jury. Meanwhile, DOJ official Matthew Galeotti announced that the department does not consider merely writing code, devoid of malicious intent, to be a crime and reassured that innovating without clear illegalities should not lead to criminal charges. The ongoing debate reflects the precarious legal landscape for developers in the cryptocurrency space, emphasizing the need for clearer regulations to protect innovation in the sector.

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