A federal judge is allowing former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried, or SBF, access to his legal team outside of jail, provided he gives sufficient notice.<\/p>\n
In an Aug. 23 order filed in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, Judge Lewis Kaplan said SBF would be allowed access to discovery materials in his criminal case in a courthouse cell block with 48 hours\u2019 notice to prosecutors and the U.S. Marshals Service. The order came prior to Kaplan reaching a decision on motions from the Justice Department and SBF\u2019s legal team regarding how much time the former FTX CEO would be allowed outside of the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn in order to assist in the preparation of his case.<\/p>\n
Kaplan said the order was in line with the accommodations the U.S. government proposed for SBF on Aug. 18. However, the details of the government\u2019s offer in the filing were largely redacted, other than claiming the U.S. Marshals Service \u201coffered these extraordinary accommodations in light of the unique nature of this case.\u201d SBF\u2019s legal team requested he be allowed outside of jail five days a week to assist with his own defense.<\/p>\n
The judge ruled on Aug. 21 that SBF be allowed roughly seven hours in the New York courthouse cell block attorney room on Aug. 22. Based on an Aug. 23 filing from his legal team, the former FTX CEO and his lawyers may have discussed the defense strategy of relying on advice of previous counsel, causing him to act \u201cin good faith\u201d in regard to his alleged actions at FTX and Alameda Research.<\/p>\n