Lawyers of Sam Bankman-Fried propose plan to get him out of jail
Lawyers of disgraced FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried have once again sent a letter to Judge Lewis Kaplan, requesting their client be released from jail before his upcoming trial — only this time, they’ve come up with a plan they hope will satisfy authorities.
In the letter submitted on Monday, lawyers said that they are finding it “exceedingly difficult” to prepare for the complex case. “This is not a point we make lightly but it is the reality of the nature of this case,” the document reads.
“We appreciate the efforts the Government has made to provide our client access to the case materials and his counsel, but we respectfully submit that, in practice, they are not workable.”
Bankman-Fried’s lawyers are concerned by the overwhelming amount of information that the case requires the defense to process and prepare for. The letter explains that prosecutors have submitted:
- over 50 potential witnesses,
- more than 3,500 pages of material, and
- over 1,300 exhibits.
Lawyers have “no indication” of which witnesses prosecutors will actually call upon, meaning that in many cases, they won’t know who will take the stand until the day prior. This means the team must be able to meet with Bankman-Fried far more frequently than what’s possible from jail, at all hours of the day, just to keep up.
“We will not be able to do this unless he is temporarily released for trial,” the letter explains.
Read more: Sam Bankman-Fried still wants out over poor WiFi and laptop access
Bankman-Fried would live with a security guard under new proposal
In previous letters, Bankman-Fried’s attorneys outlined the realities of jail visiting hours. It detailed insufficient WiFi issues, as well as several instances when Bankman-Fried was barely able to prepare due to trivial jail proceedings out of his control.
The latest letter submitted on Monday, however, proposes a solution that lawyers believe would allow Bankman-Fried to be released for the duration of the trial in a way that will satisfy authorities.
Under this proposed plan, the FTX founder would:
- remain with attorneys at their office or temporary workspace, or with a security guard at a temporary residence in New York City for the duration of the trial,
- be able to leave the courthouse with his lawyers and travel with them to their office or a temporary workspace in order to prepare for trial, and
- have constant supervision from the security guard during the evenings, to ensure he doesn’t use computers, cell phones, or other electronic devices to access the internet or television.
Lawyers have also stated that Bankman-Fried will agree to a gag order to stop him from speaking to anyone about the case, outside of his legal team and family.
Judge Kaplan has yet to respond to this latest letter. However, time is running out — Bankman-Fried’s highly-anticipated trial will begin on October 3.
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