The Tornado Cash developer continues to seek acquittal on all counts in a case that would chill "any innovation touching privacy."

There are many things that make the prosecution of Tornado Cash developer Roman Storm relevant to cryptocurrency services beyond privacy tools: from blurring the lines between custodial and non-custodial services to attempting to hold software developers accountable under the International Economic Emergency Powers Act (IEEPA).

But the case also has major implications for the writing of free software overall, which, under court's ruling in Bernstein v. US, constitutes a form of free speech under the First Amendment.

The Defense's latest motion for Roman Storm's acquittal is a stark reminder for what is at stake: if Roman Storm loses this case, it could set the legal landscape regarding the development of free software back for decades, and undo many of the wins the cypherpunks had fought for in the early 1990s.

...read more at therage.co