- Sam Bankman-Fried’s legal team is demanding the FTX founder’s access to ADHD medication.
- Mark Cohen noted that the lack of Adderall can affect Bankman-Fried’s testimony.
- While Judge Kaplan revoked Bankman-Fried’s bail in August, he allowed treatment for ADHD and depression.
The legal team defending FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried is negotiating to access his ADHD medication, Adderall. As Bankman-Fried’s criminal trial in a New York court rolls into its third week, legal representative Mark Cohen expressed that the challenge of ensuring his client receives a sufficient quantity of Adderall is impeding the defense team’s capacity to fight their case.
In a court filing from Sunday, October 15, Cohen highlighted that the lack of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) medication may have a significant impact on whether Bankman-Fried can “meaningfully participate” in the trial. Furthermore, he penned, “Mr. Bankman-Fried has been doing his best to remain focused during the trial for the past two weeks.”
As per earlier court documents, Bankman-Fried has been consuming Adderall tablets three to four times daily over the past three years. His legal team has asserted that this medication is indispensable for SBF. Moreover, during interactions with potential jurors, his attorneys called out any potential biases related to Bankman-Fried’s body language, which might be influenced by his ADHD.
Back in August, U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan revoked Bankman-Fried’s bail. However, Kaplan ruled in favor of Bankman-Fried receiving treatment for ADHD and depression. This occurred following Bankman-Fried sharing confidential writings from the prosecution’s key witness, Caroline Ellison, the former CEO of Alameda Research.
In the latest updates from Bankman-Fried’s trial, Ellison detailed how Bankman-Fried orchestrated “billions of dollars” in customer funds to support high-risk investments, ultimately resulting in the collapse of FTX.
On October 14, Bloomberg reported that Sam Bankman-Fried’s statements in tweets and group chats were being used as evidence against him. Additionally, prosecutors have introduced snapshots of messages, social media posts, and internal records to identify disparities between his public announcements and confidential instructions to his inner circle.
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