The ongoing trial of Sam Bankman-Fried, founder of crypto trading company Alameda Research, is now taking a comedic turn. In a recent exchange, prosecutors lined up to present their arguments in opposition to the defense’s stance. The opposing counsel’s comparison of the defense argument to the film ‘Dumb and Dumber’ has caused uproar.
The prosecutor, Stephanie Sodini-Groves, began with her statement and then moved swiftly to elaborate why she believes the defense’s stance is similar to the movie ‘Dumb and Dumber’. After pointing out that the current case revolves around whether Bankman-Fried deliberately acted to hide information from the public, she compared that claim to Lloyd Christmas from ‘Dumb and Dumber’ – “just thinking that he was doing something smart, but in the end, he was missing something obvious.”
Bankman-Fried’s defense team, led by defense attorney Daniel Sommers, responded to the statement almost immediately. They cited the movie’s final scene as an example of the opposite of what the prosecutors had stated. They argued that Lloyd and Harry concluded the movie “succeeding in the end due to their sheer will and focus, which is what makes them so different from the claims being made by the prosecutors”.
Further, the defense team cited the various instances throughout the movie where Lloyd and Harry’s significant lack of knowledge cost them opportunities and relationships. The defense alleged that the same can be said of their clients dream to create a successful crypto trading company. They backed up their point by emphasizing the significant business insight Bankman-Fried has applied over the years, in order to build a ‘smart and savvy’ company.
Though the legal team has yet to come to a conclusion in the Sam Bankman Fried trial, the opposing counsel’s comparison between the defense argument and the comedy ‘Dumb and Dumber’ could prove interesting as the case progresses. Bankman-Fried’s response to the defense team’s retort showed an impressive knowledge of the movie, but whether these arguments are considered valid remains to be seen.