The post Did Tornado Cash Developers Just Get a Lifeline From Solana? appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com. Crime The Solana Policy Institute (SPI) has pledged $500,000 toward the legal defenses of Roman Storm and Alexey Pertsev, two developers behind the privacy protocol Tornado Cash. Both men face convictions tied to the software’s use in criminal activity — Storm in the United States and Pertsev in the Netherlands. The donation stands out not only for its size but also because it comes from outside Ethereum’s ecosystem, where Tornado Cash originated. SPI framed the prosecutions as a fundamental misunderstanding of how open-source code works. Developers on Trial for Their Code “The governments’ logic is simple but dangerous,” SPI CEO Miller Whitehouse-Levine said. “If you write open-source code that anyone can use — for good or for ill — you’re responsible for its misuse, even if you no longer control it.” This precedent has alarmed developers across the industry, who argue that holding coders liable for third-party actions could have chilling effects on innovation. Defense lawyers at Storm’s trial compared Tornado Cash to WhatsApp or other encryption tools, which remain legal even though they are used for illicit purposes. Storm was convicted earlier this month on one count: conspiracy to knowingly handle criminal funds in connection with operating a money transmitting business. The jury deadlocked on the more serious money laundering and sanctions conspiracy charges, leaving prosecutors the option to retry him. Judge Katherine Failla herself acknowledged the case left many avenues open for appeal. A Growing War Chest Storm’s defense team has already raised $5.4 million of the $7 million they estimate will be needed. Since his conviction, donations have poured in — including matching pledges of up to $1 million from the Ethereum Foundation, a $500,000 personal pledge from Ethereum core developer Federico Carrone, and now the $500,000 from SPI. The urgency comes from the possibility that U.S.… The post Did Tornado Cash Developers Just Get a Lifeline From Solana? appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com. Crime The Solana Policy Institute (SPI) has pledged $500,000 toward the legal defenses of Roman Storm and Alexey Pertsev, two developers behind the privacy protocol Tornado Cash. Both men face convictions tied to the software’s use in criminal activity — Storm in the United States and Pertsev in the Netherlands. The donation stands out not only for its size but also because it comes from outside Ethereum’s ecosystem, where Tornado Cash originated. SPI framed the prosecutions as a fundamental misunderstanding of how open-source code works. Developers on Trial for Their Code “The governments’ logic is simple but dangerous,” SPI CEO Miller Whitehouse-Levine said. “If you write open-source code that anyone can use — for good or for ill — you’re responsible for its misuse, even if you no longer control it.” This precedent has alarmed developers across the industry, who argue that holding coders liable for third-party actions could have chilling effects on innovation. Defense lawyers at Storm’s trial compared Tornado Cash to WhatsApp or other encryption tools, which remain legal even though they are used for illicit purposes. Storm was convicted earlier this month on one count: conspiracy to knowingly handle criminal funds in connection with operating a money transmitting business. The jury deadlocked on the more serious money laundering and sanctions conspiracy charges, leaving prosecutors the option to retry him. Judge Katherine Failla herself acknowledged the case left many avenues open for appeal. A Growing War Chest Storm’s defense team has already raised $5.4 million of the $7 million they estimate will be needed. Since his conviction, donations have poured in — including matching pledges of up to $1 million from the Ethereum Foundation, a $500,000 personal pledge from Ethereum core developer Federico Carrone, and now the $500,000 from SPI. The urgency comes from the possibility that U.S.…