Tornado Cash developer trial prohibits mention of key case law

According to ChainCatcher, as reported by Decrypt, U.S. District Judge Katherine Polk Failla ruled that the Van Loon v. Treasury case decision, which determined that "immutable smart contracts do not constitute property," cannot be mentioned in the criminal trial of Tornado Cash developer Roman Storm. Storm is charged with money laundering, evading sanctions, and other offenses, and if convicted, he faces up to 45 years in prison.

The judge stated that the precedent is irrelevant to the criminal case and could confuse the jury. This case will test whether developers should be held criminally liable for the way their code is used, with the trial scheduled to take place on July 14 in Manhattan.