Eager to be judged in second instance, Sam Bankman-Fried is counting on his lawyers to win his case. The former CEO of the FTX exchange considers in particular to have been ridiculed by Judge Lews Kaplan throughout his trial.
Sam Bankman-Fried's lawyers are working to organize a new trial
Sentenced to 25 years in prison At first instance, Sam Bankman-Fried is clearly not satisfied with this sentence which he has already started to serve. This is why last April, the ex-CEO of FTX logically made a request for an appeal which he hopes to see succeed.
For the lawyers of the principal concerned, “ everyone rushed to judge » SBF following the bankruptcy of the exchange he managed.
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“ The principles of a fair trial were swept away in a tsunami of convictions followed by an incomprehensible verdict, » can we read in a brief supporting the appeal request. This was written by one of SBF's lawyers, Alexandra Shapiro, who filed it last September in the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in New York.
In this legal brief, the defense lawyers noted shortcomings, but also actions who according to them, prove that it is necessary to organize a second trial :
When the government presents its arguments, the defendants have the right to refute them and present their version of the facts. In our client's trial, none of this happened.
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Judge Lewis Kaplan accused of ridiculing former FTX boss throughout trial
In the sights of SBF lawyers, Judge Lewis Kaplan who presided over the trial and determined the sentence. According to them, the lawyer did not demonstrate impartiality. Therefore, if the appeal request were to be granted, former FTX executive wants another judge to review his case.
“ Many of the judge's decisions were not only wrong but unbalancedrepeatedly putting his finger on the scale to help the government and thwart the defense, » indicate SBF’s lawyers.
The latter went further, asserting that Lewis Kaplan had “ continually ridiculed Sam Bankman-Fried during the trialto the point of repeatedly criticizing his behavior and expressing his disbelief in the face of SBF's testimony “.
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Lawyers for the ex-CEO of FTX say they felt the same thing at their level. “ The judge repeatedly mocked the defense lawyers, criticizing our questioning in front of the jurors while doing everything possible to help the government by various means, » they explain.
Finally, they accuse Lewis Kaplan of having “ inappropriately induced jurors to reach a quick verdict ». To support their remarks, the defense lawyers referred to the first day of deliberations where the judge would have invited the jurors to stay late in order to move forward on the caseeven offering to feed them and take them home if necessary.
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Source: Court Listener
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