DOJ CRIMINALIZING PRIVACY! UNACCEPTABLE
If you think privacy is only for criminals,
take a look at what’s happening right now.
As defenders of freedom of and from religion — freedoms already enshrined in the U.S. Constitution — we reject the dangerous notion (now echoed in parts of federal enforcement rhetoric) that “honest people don’t need privacy because they have nothing to hide.” That argument is unacceptable.
A recent federal prosecution highlights this fight: Keonne Rodriguez, co‑founder of Samourai Wallet — an open‑source Bitcoin wallet designed to enhance transaction privacy — pleaded guilty to operating an unlicensed money transmitting business and is facing prison time over software that helped users protect financial privacy. Prosecutors and the DOJ allege the tool facilitated transactions later used in illegal activity, and Rodriguez has been sentenced to up to five years in prison.
Privacy advocates see this as part of a broader crisis: governments and enforcement agencies treating privacy‑enhancing tools as inherently suspect, rather than recognizing that privacy is a fundamental right for everyone — not just those labeled “criminals.” Even the idea that privacy is only for the guilty is unacceptable in a free society.
Therefore, our policies cite specific federal and state laws that refute these claims and make it clear we will not tolerate violations against anyone’s autonomy, privacy, and right to self‑determination — whether religious, philosophical, political, or human.
Our religion isn’t for everyone (none are), but these fundamental rights are universal and goes well beyond just our concerns how this effects the right to privacy and its latest trespass on our U.S. Constitution. They must be defended at all costs if this Constitutional Republic is to survive and individual natural and civil rights are to be protected by everyone.
It doesn’t matter if we all “get along,” or what you believe about religion or spirituality. What does matter is this: when our shared, fundamental rights are threatened, we must stand united. This is not a partisan issue — it’s a human rights issue, and the urgency is real.
The Privacy Flashpoint: Shield vs. Cloak
The case of Keonne Rodriguez and Samourai Wallet is a flashpoint for a debate that has been simmering since the dawn of the internet: Is privacy a shield for the innocent or a cloak for the guilty?
The rhetoric that "if you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to fear" is a logical fallacy that ignores the distinction between secrecy (hiding an act) and privacy (protecting one's self). When privacy is treated as a privilege granted by the state rather than a natural right, the foundation of a free society begins to erode.
1. The "Nothing to Hide" Fallacy vs. Personal Autonomy
The argument that privacy is only for criminals assumes that the government is the sole arbiter of what is "wrong." However, privacy is essential for several non-criminal reasons:
Religious and Philosophical Freedom: For those in minority religions or unconventional philosophical groups, privacy is the only thing preventing social ostracization or state-level discrimination. Without a private sphere, "freedom of belief" becomes an empty promise, as individuals fear to think or worship differently than the majority.
Protection from Data Monetization: In a digital economy, your private financial data is a commodity. Every transaction you make is a data point. Without privacy tools, individuals are vulnerable to predatory marketing, invasive data brokers, and identity theft.
Political Dissent: Historically, every movement for social change—from the American Revolution to the Civil Rights Movement—required private spaces to organize and communicate before going public. Transparency for the government is a check on power; transparency for the citizen is a tool of control.
2. The Legal & Constitutional Conflict
The U.S. Constitution provides a framework that explicitly rejects the "nothing to hide" mantra.
The Fourth Amendment: Protects against "unreasonable searches and seizures." It does not say "unless you are suspected of a crime"; it establishes a baseline of privacy that the government must prove a "probable cause" to breach.
The Fifth Amendment: The right against self-incrimination is the ultimate legal acknowledgment that an individual has the right to keep their thoughts and information private from the state.
The prosecution of developers for "unlicensed money transmitting" when they are merely writing code (like Samourai Wallet) creates a dangerous precedent. It suggests that creating the means for privacy is equivalent to facilitating a crime. This is a logical leap that could eventually be used to criminalize end-to-end encryption, VPNs, and even the physical locks on your doors.
3. The Universal Nature of Privacy
This isn't a partisan or religious issue; it is a human rights issue. When the DOJ or any federal agency treats privacy-enhancing tools as "inherently suspect," they are effectively saying that the default state of a citizen should be total transparency to the government.
The Slippery Slope of "Default Transparency"
Current State: Privacy is a right.
Potential Future: Privacy is considered "suspicious activity."
Current State: Financial tools are neutral.
Potential Future: Developers are held legally liable for user behavior.
Current State: Religion and Belief are private.
Potential Future: Personal beliefs are monitored by algorithms for "radicalization."
4. Why We Must Stand United
The "divide and conquer" tactic works by making one group feel that the loss of privacy only affects "the others"—the criminals, the radicals, or the fringe. However, history teaches us that once the infrastructure for mass surveillance and the criminalization of privacy tools is built, it is eventually used against everyone.
If a religious organization’s right to privacy is stripped today, a political activist’s right is next. If a Bitcoin developer is jailed for writing privacy code, the developer of an encrypted messaging app (like Signal or WhatsApp) could be next. We do not need to share a faith or a political party to share the same basic requirement for autonomy.
The right to be left alone is the bedrock of every other freedom we hold dear.
The Executive Crossroads: A Test of Constitutional Promises
President Donald Trump has indicated a potential review of the Keonne Rodriguez case as public pressure mounts regarding the federal conviction of the Samourai Wallet co-founder. When asked about Rodriguez’s upcoming prison sentence, Trump said, “I’ve heard about it. I’ll look at it.”
“I don’t know anything about it,” President Trump said. “But we’ll take a look.”
Rodriguez publicly acknowledged Trump’s sentiment, tweeting: “Your continued noise is working. Thank you to everyone pushing @realDonaldTrump to pardon Bill and me. Let’s get this over the line. #pardonsamourai”
The Prosecution vs. The Code
Rodriguez and his co-founder, William “Bill” Hill, were convicted of conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money transmitting business. This charge stems from Samourai Wallet, a Bitcoin privacy tool that allowed users to mix coins and maintain financial anonymity without giving up custody of their funds.
Case Status and Sentencing Update
As of January 2026, the case has reached its most critical stage. On November 6, 2025, Keonne Rodriguez was sentenced to the statutory maximum of 60 months (5 years) in federal prison. His co-founder, William Hill, was sentenced to 48 months (4 years) on November 19, 2025. Both men were also ordered to pay fines of $250,000 each and forced to agree to a staggering forfeiture judgment of nearly $238 million.
Keonne Rodriguez is currently incarcerated, having reported to federal prison on December 19, 2025, following the court's rejection of requests for a lighter sentence.
A Dangerous Precedent for Software Developers
While the case began under the Biden administration, it concluded under the current Justice Department. Critics argue this represents a "chilling moment" for the crypto industry. The DOJ alleged that Samourai facilitated over $2 billion in transactions and laundered $100 million in illicit funds. However, the prosecution relied heavily on the "unlicensed money transmission" charge—a theory that effectively treats the act of writing and hosting privacy software as the act of moving money itself.
The DOJ's framing focused on the developers' marketing, claiming they "actively encouraged criminal use." Yet, privacy advocates point out that the same tools used by bad actors are the very tools required by human rights activists and ordinary citizens to prevent surveillance.
The Stakes of a Pardon Trump’s comments come amid his campaign promises to defend the right to self-custody and financial privacy. During the 2024 Bitcoin Conference in Nashville, he pledged to end the “anti-crypto crusade.”
A pardon for Rodriguez and Hill would signal a clear commitment to those promises, protecting developers from legal exposure for building tools that enhance privacy and security for everyday Americans.
Furthermore, the administration has recently overseen the creation of a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve, using forfeited Bitcoin—including funds from the Samourai case—as a sovereign stockpile. This creates a complex contradiction: the government is now backing the U.S. dollar with the very assets it criminalized the developers for protecting.
With Rodriguez now behind bars, the Trump administration faces a high-profile decision that will shape the future of financial privacy, software development, and cryptocurrency regulation in the United States.
