sotto

This is Ross Ulbricht. 10 years ago today, Ross was arrested for creating a website. If the government gets their way, he'll die in prison. Ross is serving a double life sentence plus 40 years for, again, creating a website. If that sounds ridiculous and infuriating to you, keep reading.  It gets worse. Ross created a website called Silk Road, which he designed to be a free market, secure, anonymous marketplace.  It used Bicoin for payment, and utilized a system called Tor which allowed buyers and sellers to access it anonymously and without any trace. An avid libertarian, Ross prohibited anything being sold on Silk Road that violated the Non-Aggression Principle. This included stolen items, counterfeit/fraudulent items, child p**n, assassinations, etc. A devout believer in nonviolence, Ross also prohibited the sale of weapons. Many items that were sold on Silk Road were legal, and a third-party study of the site inventory by Carnegie-Mellon University concluded that the drugs most commonly sold were small amounts of cannabis.  Most importantly, Ross was not convicted for selling, buying, or being in proximity to any of the items that were sold on Silk Road, legal or illegal. He was convicted for what others did on the site. Imagine if Elon, or Zuck, or any of the other owners of web platforms were charged for what other people did on them. On October of 2013, Ross was arrested by the FBI and charged with money laundering conspiracy, computer hacking conspiracy, fake ID trafficking conspiracy and narcotics trafficking. (Ross did not actually launder money, hack computers or sell illegal items himself. These charges were based on what users listed on the site.)   After his arrest, the prosecution fraudulently alleged that Ross attempted to have several people killed, but never charged him for this at trial, and his supposed "victim", Curtis Green, publicly stated that those allegations were false. He is a fervent supporter of Ross. Despite the fact that these false, unproven allegations were never prosecuted, the federal government used them in the media to paint Ross as some kind of violent criminal kingpin, despite the fact that he was nonviolent and lived a very meager life, living with 3 other roommates in an apartment. The FBI also seized over 144,000 Bitcoin that they found in a shared wallet on Ross's computer, which today is worth over $3.8 billion. During Ross's trial: - Evidence and testimony showing that multiple people ran the website was banned from being discussed at trial. - Ross's defense team was not allowed to cross-examine the prosecution's witnesses or present their own witnesses - Key exonerating evidence was blocked by the judge - The prosecution was permitted to allege to the jury that Ross had hired hits on people despite never charging him with this or allowing him the opportunity to defend himself against the allegation The jury found Ross guilty on all charges, and the judge sentenced this first-time, nonviolent person to double life plus 40 years without parole. After Ross's trial, two of the key investigating federal agents were convicted on corruption charges related to Ross's case. Their existence was hidden from the jury during trial. Despite all of this, Ross’s conviction was lost on appeal, and the Supreme Court refused to hear his case. There is no other way to say it: Ross was railroaded by a corrupt federal government that wanted to make an example of him and steal his Bitcoin. During his 10 years in prison, Ross has continued to be a model citizen, teaching classes and tutoring his fellow inmates and helping them to earn their GEDs.  He has also completed several educational programs himself and has never received a single disciplinary sanction. Ross Ulbricht is a peaceful, nonviolent man who has never harmed anyone and whose only "crime" was to create a website that other people used to sell drugs that shouldn't be illegal in the first place. And for this, he's already spent a decade in prison. If he is not pardoned, or his sentence commuted, he will die there. That is unacceptable, and it is long past time for Ross to be set free. Obama could have set Ross free with the stroke of a pen, but he wouldn't. Neither would Trump. Neither has Biden. Let's replace them with someone who will. Ross, I am sorry for what you're going through, and I will not stop fighting for your freedom until you're back home where you belong. Free Ross Ulbricht.