Bitcoin Policy Institute Calls For Samourai Pardon As Petition Tops...
A Washington think tank and prominent Bitcoiners say jailing the Samourai Wallet developers for an “unlicensed money transmitter” conspiracy criminalizes non-custodial code.
The chorus of voices calling for a presidential pardon of Samourai wallet developers Keonne Rodriguez and William Lonergan Hill is growing, as Bitcoin advocates and policy groups call on US President Donald Trump to intervene before the pair report to prison next year.
Rodriguez and Hill were sentenced in November to five and four years in prison, respectively, after pleading guilty to conspiring to operate an unlicensed money-transmitting business. Under a plea deal, each admitted only to conspiring to run an unlicensed money-transmitting business, with the laundering charge dropped. Both are due to report to prison in early January 2026, unless a pardon can be secured.
High-profile figures in the Bitcoin (BTC) community have voiced their support for pardons, including veteran broadcaster and Bitcoin advocate Max Keiser, Bitcoin media entrepreneur Marty Bent and host of The Bitcoin Podcast, Walker America.
The Bitcoin Policy Institute’s (BPI) Zack Shapiro made a case for a full pardon, arguing that the Samourai case misapplies federal money-transmission law to non-custodial software.
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On Dec. 2, the Bitcoin Policy Institute published a detailed case in favor of pardoning the Samourai developers, arguing that the prosecution was based on a misapplication of federal money-transmission law and that non-custodial tools fall outside the BSA’s money-transmitter framework.
From BPI’s perspective, “A pardon would correct a clear misapplication of federal law, protect the integrity of long-standing distinctions in financial regulation, and reaffirm that publishing non-custodial software is not — and should not become — a criminal act.”
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The petition to pardon the Samourai devs had acquired more than 3,200 signatures at the time of writing, with support from the Bitcoin community and beyond. Walker America posted on Dec. 2:
Source: CoinTelegraph
