The Solana Policy Institute (SPI) has pledged $500,000 toward the legal defenses of Roman Storm and Alexey Pertsev, two developers behind the privacy protocol Tornado Cash.
Both men face convictions tied to the software’s use in criminal activity — Storm in the United States and Pertsev in the Netherlands.
The donation stands out not only for its size but also because it comes from outside Ethereum’s ecosystem, where Tornado Cash originated. SPI framed the prosecutions as a fundamental misunderstanding of how open-source code works.
Developers on Trial for Their Code
“The governments’ logic is simple but dangerous,” SPI CEO Miller Whitehouse-Levine said. “If you write open-source code that anyone can use — for good or for ill — you’re responsible for its misuse, even if you no longer control it.”
This precedent has alarmed developers across the industry, who argue that holding coders liable for third-party actions could have chilling effects on innovation. Defense lawyers at Storm’s trial compared Tornado Cash to WhatsApp or other encryption tools, which remain legal even though they are used for illicit purposes.
Storm was convicted earlier this month on one count: conspiracy to knowingly handle criminal funds in connection with operating a money transmitting business. The jury deadlocked on the more serious money laundering and sanctions conspiracy charges, leaving prosecutors the option to retry him. Judge Katherine Failla herself acknowledged the case left many avenues open for appeal.
A Growing War Chest
Storm’s defense team has already raised $5.4 million of the $7 million they estimate will be needed. Since his conviction, donations have poured in — including matching pledges of up to $1 million from the Ethereum Foundation, a $500,000 personal pledge from Ethereum core developer Federico Carrone, and now the $500,000 from SPI.
The urgency comes from the possibility that U.S. prosecutors could seek a new trial on the unresolved charges, further prolonging the case.
Industry Pushes Back
SPI’s pledge coincides with a broader industry response. On August 27, the DeFi Education Fund released a letter signed by multiple crypto leaders urging the U.S. Senate to create legal safeguards for developers. Whitehouse-Levine drew a stark analogy: “The U.S. doesn’t prosecute highway engineers when criminals use roads. Congress must treat blockchain infrastructure the same way.”
Why Storm’s Case Matters Globally
Though Pertsev is also appealing his conviction in Europe, legal experts believe Storm’s U.S. appeal carries wider weight. If his case makes it to the Supreme Court, it could establish a precedent separating developer liability from the actions of code users — a ruling that would shape how governments worldwide regulate open-source software.
For now, SPI’s half-million-dollar pledge reinforces a growing consensus: protecting developers from being criminalized for their creations is becoming one of the crypto industry’s defining battles.
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Source: https://coindoo.com/did-tornado-cash-developers-just-get-a-lifeline-from-solana/