‘Keys to the Kingdom’: Ulbricht Defense Slams Court in Latest Brief

It has been nearly a year since Ross Ulbricht was convicted in all seven charges filed against him for his substantial role as the figurehead in the running of Silk Road, the infamously anonymous dark web drug marketplace. Now, his defense is filing to appeal. Their strategy is to seek a retrial by citing a long stack of abuses by the prosecutors and the court while convicting Ulbricht. The defense will argue that the court prevented crucial evidence from seeing the day of light. In particular, the evidence and information surrounding two corrupt federal agents who were involved in the....

Ross Ulbricht’s legal defense filed a reply to the government as part of his appeal this week. On behalf of Ulbricht, who was sentenced to double life in prison without parole for operating the Silk Road dark marketplace under the alias Dread Pirate Roberts (DPR) more than a year ago, attorney Joshua Dratel disputes the fairness of the trial. The defense has requested that Ulbricht’s “convictions should be vacated, and a new trial ordered, or that he be re-sentenced before a different district judge.” Ulbricht's defense had issued an initial appeal earlier this year, which was answered by....

Source: YouTube user Ross Ulbricht. An update to a story recently posted on the topic of alleged Silk Road founder Ross Ulbricht. After a bail hearing on the 21st of November, the court decided to not grant Ulbricht bail. Ulbricht's lawyer, Joshua Dratel set before the court the proposition to grant $1 million bail to Ulbricht (an amount pledged by Ulbricht's family and friends). The court decided this wasn't the way to go, particularly after hearing the Manhattan federal prosecutor's case that Ulbricht would try to flee the United States before it was time for his trial. Ulbricht's family....

U. S. District Judge Katherine Forrest told Ross Ulbricht late last week that he has until the government rests its case Monday to decide if he wants to testify in his own defense, The Wall Street Journal reported today. Ulbricht is accused of operating Silk Road, the online drug marketplace. The judge's ultimatum struck some legal experts as unusual, according to The Wall Street Journal. Experts interviewed by the newspaper said defendants are typically allowed to wait until the end of a trial before deciding to testify or not. On Thursday, Ulbricht's lawyer, Joshua Dratel, objected to....

Nearly eight months after being sentenced to life in prison for his role in the operation of the now-defunct online black market Silk Road, Ross Ulbricht is seeking a new trial. In a new filing submitted to the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, Ulbricht's defense – which declared its intent to appeal in June – argued that the court hid key evidence, particularly the actions of federal agents Carl Mark Force IV and Shaun Bridges amid the US government's investigation of the Silk Road. The defense also questioned the legality of some of the searches and seizures conducted during....