Imagine pouring your heart into open-source code that empowers everyday people to protect their financial privacy in a transparent crypto world, much like cash does in traditional finance. Now imagine being slammed with a maximum five-year prison sentence simply because a tiny fraction of users (just 10% of $2B+ in transactions, amounting to $237M) misused it for illicit purposes. That's the nightmare unfolding for Samourai Wallet developers Keonne Rodriguez and William Lonergan Hill—first-time offenders with zero criminal history—who built non-custodial Bitcoin privacy software that never held users' funds or keys. It harmed no one directly, yet they're being punished as if they ran a criminal empire.
These innovators created tools to shield lawful transactions from surveillance, protecting dissidents, donors, and ordinary citizens alike. But the DOJ's radical overreach (ignoring FinCEN's pre-indictment advice that they weren’t a money transmitter) hiding exculpatory evidence for over a year in a Brady violation, and twisting laws to criminalize privacy code, has led to devastation. Keonne Rodriguez was just sentenced on November 6, 2025, to five years in prison plus a $250,000 fine. William Lonergan Hill was sentenced on November 19, 2025, to four years in prison plus a $250,000 fine. They cooperated fully: no resistance during their April 24, 2024 arrest, strict bail compliance, forfeiting $6.4 million (a decade's earnings), and enduring 19 months of strict house arrest. Still, the 79 year old judge hit them with the harshest penalty possible, while banks like TD Bank and HSBC escape jail time for far worse money-laundering scandals.
This isn't justice, it's a chilling attack on free speech and innovation. As Rep. Warren Davidson put it, "It’s like blaming Microsoft for drug cartels downloading and using Excel." Criminalizing code violates the First Amendment, erodes our right to financial privacy, and threatens self-custody in crypto. It stifles U.S. progress, driving projects offshore and undermining decentralization. Coin Center warns: "A delivery service that cannot access the underlying contents... is plainly not a money transmitter." The Cato Institute calls it a "chilling moment for financial privacy." And Sen. Cynthia Lummis blasts: "The Biden administration steamrolling the existing and longstanding interpretation of FinCEN is not only wrong on the law … wallet software is no more to blame for illicit finance than a highway is responsible for a bank robber’s getaway car."
Join thousands demanding a presidential pardon NOW to right this wrong, demand DOJ oversight, and push for protective laws like the Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act. Sign this petition, share it everywhere, and let's flood the White House with voices for justice. Your signature could free them, safeguard free speech, and preserve America's crypto leadership. Sign today—defend our future!
Sign today, defend our future!
Source : Change.org
Change.org
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Stand Up for Freedom: Pardon the Innocent Coders Jailed for Building Privacy Tools!