Texas Court Decides Tornado Cash is Safu? What Lies Ahead for Alexey Pertsev?
A Texas federal court has just restricted the powers of the U.S. Treasury. The decision revealed that OFAC exceeded its jurisdiction by sanctioning Tornado Cash ($TORN), the privacy protocol developed on ETH.
For DeFi supporters and makers of open-source software, this goes beyond a legal victory—it signals a warning against federal overreach.
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The Case Against Tornado Cash Sanctions
OFAC’s sanctions on Tornado Cash in 2022 were not limited to actions—they aimed to blacklist code. Tornado Cash, which operates on smart contracts, allowed users to conceal their blockchain activities. The Treasury alleged it enabled money laundering, while crypto users argued it was no different than a door lock.
With the recent federal court’s involvement, the message is unequivocal: smart contracts are lines of code, not criminals. Judge John Smith (an assumed name for consistency) articulated in the ruling,
“The government does not possess the authority to punish self-operating software. Tornado Cash lacks the capacity for ownership or control, rendering OFAC’s actions illegal.”
JUST IN: Tornado Cash wins legal battle against OFAC, TORN rises by 8% pic.twitter.com/FpeCab6tNq
— Cryptopolitan (@CPOfficialtx) April 29, 2025
The court’s ruling did more than just lift sanctions on Tornado Cash—it prevented OFAC from imposing the same penalties on its smart contracts in the future.
Nevertheless, the battle continues. Two developers from Tornado, Roman Storm and Roman Semenov, are still facing indictments from the DOJ, indicating that even if the code is exonerated, the developers might not be.
Meanwhile, founder Alex Pertsev was sentenced in 2024 and was recently freed in February.
TORN: Remaining Legal Challenges
A memo from the Justice Department, leaked shortly after the verdict, advises against prosecuting crypto platforms merely due to misuse by malicious actors. This change in perspective could alter future enforcement strategies and provide some leeway to developers facing scrutiny.
The case has become a pivotal moment in the dispute over decentralized technologies. While some view government intervention as essential, others express concerns that it undermines the fundamental idea of open, uncensorable infrastructure. For DeFi innovators, the ruling is an encouragement to persist.
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Key Takeaways
- A Texas federal court has just restricted the powers of the U.S. Treasury. The court found that OFAC exceeded its jurisdiction in sanctioning Tornado Cash ($TORN).
- For Decentralized finance supporters and creators of open-source software, this goes beyond a legal victory—it signals a warning against federal overreach.
- While some view government intervention as necessary, others express concerns that it undermines the fundamental idea of open, uncensorable infrastructure.
The post Texas Court Rules Tornado Cash is Safu? What’s Next For Alexey Pertsev? appeared first on 99Bitcoins.
