Tornado Cash Dev Roman Storm Won’t Testify—Legal Team Drops Bombshell Decision
In a courtroom twist that's got crypto circles buzzing, Tornado Cash developer Roman Storm's lawyers just confirmed he won't take the stand. The move throws gasoline on an already fiery privacy-tech vs. regulators showdown.
Why this matters: Storm's code—not his testimony—now becomes the star witness. The DOJ's case hinges on proving Tornado Cash was designed for laundering, not just anonymizing. No developer mea culpa means they'll need to crack the protocol's math instead of its creator.
Legal chess move: By keeping Storm silent, his team avoids a cross-examination bloodbath. Prosecutors lose their chance to mine for soundbites—like that time a banker called privacy tools 'terrorist tech' before funneling dirty cash through Panama.
The trial's outcome could redefine how much liability devs carry for open-source code. Either way, the verdict's ripple effect will hit harder than a 51% attack on DeFi's regulatory future.
Value of privacy
Storm’s defense elicited witness testimony detailing non-criminal reasons why someone might want to use a tool like Tornado Cash to separate their identity from their financial transactions.
Dr. Matthew Green, renowned cryptography expert and professor of computer science at Johns Hopkins University, told the jury on Tuesday that the lack of privacy was a “bug” in the majority of cryptocurrencies, exposing users to threats from hackers and other attackers.
Green — who offered his expert witness services to Storm’s defense for free — explained that, without a tool like Tornado Cash, ethereum users are exposing sensitive personal information with every transaction, including how much money they have, what they spend it on and who they associate with. This presents a range of security risks, including phishing attempts, fraud and in-person “wrench attacks,” which Green explained have been “accelerating” in recent years.
Next steps
Whether the jury will side with the prosecution’s view of Tornado Cash or the defense’s has yet to be decided.
Tomorrow, both sides will have a chance to summarize their arguments in closing statements to the jury, after which the jury will be instructed by the judge on the charges against Storm and then released to deliberate.
