Posted on 08/04/2020 9:01:22 AM PDT by RandFan
My son, Ross Ulbricht, is a first-time offender serving a double life sentence without parole, plus 40 years, for a website he made when he was 26 years old and passionate about free markets and privacy. Ross―an Eagle Scout, scientist and peaceful entrepreneur―had all non-violent charges at trial. He was never prosecuted for causing harm or bodily injury and no victim was named at trial.
This is a sentence that shocks the conscience.
There is a strong consensus that Ross’s case is a miscarriage of justice. Over 250 organizations, eminent individuals and leaders have voiced their support.
The website Silk Road was an e-commerce platform similar to eBay, where consenting users chose what to buy and sell as long as no third party was harmed (some listings were prohibited). Both legal and illegal items were sold, most commonly personal amounts of cannabis.
Ross is condemned to die in prison, not for selling drugs himself but for creating a website where others did. This is far harsher than the punishment for many murderers, pedophiles, rapists and other violent people. All the other defendants related to the case―including the actual drug sellers and the creator of Silk Road 2―received sentences from 17 months to 10 years.
Ross’s investigation, trial and sentencing were rife with abuse. This includes corrupt federal investigators (now in prison) who were hidden from the jury, as well as prosecutorial misconduct, constitutional violations and reliance on uncharged, false allegations at sentencing. Ross was smeared in the media through false and inaccurate reporting.
Ross was not treated fairly and his sentence is draconian. Justice was not served.
We, the undersigned, seek mercy for Ross Ulbricht. He told the court that starting Silk Road was a terrible mistake that he deeply regrets, that he never intended harm, and that he has learned the heavy price of breaking the law. Ross is not a danger to anyone. If released tomorrow, he would never come near breaking the law again.
Ross’s life history clearly shows he is a compassionate young man who is widely loved and has much to give. Over 100 who personally know him have written letters testifying to his excellent character and how much he has helped others. These include those in prison, where Ross has shown exemplary behavior, tutored, led classes and helped fellow prisoners.
Keeping Ross caged for life helps no one, will cost taxpayers about $2 million, and deprives society of an exceptionally kind, generous and creative person.
This is Ross's seventh year in prison. He clings to the hope of a second chance. He dreams of a future where he can be reunited with his loved ones, start a family, contribute to society, and inspire change as an advocate for criminal justice reform.
Mr. President, please commute Ross Ulbricht’s unjust sentence.
it was an eBay for drugs and weapons. He took a cut of the transactions.
He was making lots of $$$ in bitcoin but that shouldn’t mean he should get treated so harshly...
And yet human traffickers, dark web pedophile sites don’t get that extreme of a sentence.
I don’t know the whole story but things done in the dark (web included) will one day come into light. Why did he create it for dark web if it was to be above board?
while maybe this guys sentence was a little extreme, I think drug dealers and many related people should have harsher sentences.
Our country is sliding down hill fast due to various addictions and parents, teachers, leaders of kids/teens many times the instigator or aiding in or enabling those addictions.
The weird thing is the whole operation was quite sophisticated. He is clearly talented and I’d love to know why he decided to set the whole thing up when he must have known he’d get busted eventually (they all do) .
However stupidity should not translate into a 40 year sentence !
Ross, or Someone using his communications systems, hired hit men.
That's about the size of it. No sympathy here either. The tentacles of the drug demon reach into every community in America. This punk can rot in jail hell; he certainly helped a lot of people on their path to hell—both figuratively and literally.
His only hope is that this Federal Government isn't likely to last much longer.
He was never convicted of that...
Innocent until proven guilty.
You can’t make millions of dollars doing illegal activities unless you bribe politicians. That was his mistake. He would still be in business had he greased the right palms.
That last part is not in the article.
Do you have a link? Would rather not have "hiring a hit man" in the searches on my work computer. :)
Let him rot for at least 20 years.
A digital Drug dealer is still a drug dealer
I believe it was only an allegation/smear released by the prosecution. He was never charged or convicted of it so it was likely BS for the media.
I think your right. The harsh sentence is down to how much he was bringing in and perhaps stepping on toes?
So half his sentence then... better than nothing. I’m sure he’d take it.
They rarely charge you with everything they have especially when it is a plea deal.
There is almost a 100% chance the Feds offered him a plea deal.
Before I take sides, I would like to know the minimum sentence he turned down, and what he refused to tell the Feds.
I have no sympathy for some turd who profitably runs a web based bazar for illegal drugs because I personally know what that illegal, “nonviolent” crime does to real people. A dearly beloved, deceased cousin of mine had an adopted daughter who became a professional heroin addict, abandoned her kids, and spent all of her life as a parasite, devastating my cousin’s life and destroying her son’s, who committed suicide when a girlfriend dumped him. BTW, the rotten witch didn’t go to either my cousin’s funeral or her own son’s. So, please don’t cry me a river about some rotten drug tycoon who got what he deserved.
From the wiki:
‘Federal prosecutors alleged that Ulbricht had paid $730,000 in murder-for-hire deals targeting at least five people,[28] allegedly because they threatened to reveal Ulbricht’s Silk Road enterprise.[35][36] Prosecutors believe no contracted killing actually occurred.[28] Ulbricht was not charged in his trial in New York federal court with any murder-for-hire,[28][37] but evidence was introduced at trial supporting the allegations.[28][36] The evidence that Ulbricht had commissioned murders was considered by the judge in sentencing Ulbricht to life, and was a factor in the Second Circuit’s decision to affirm the life sentence.[36] A separate indictment against Ulbricht in federal court in Maryland on a single murder-for-hire charge, alleging that he contracted to kill one of his employees (a former Silk Road moderator),[38] was dismissed with prejudice by prosecutors in July 2018, after his New York conviction and sentence became final.
Also, wasn’t there a few FBI agents that tried to make off with some of the bitcoin they confiscated from him that also went to jail?
Haven’t read about it willy but it wouldn’t surprise me.
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