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It's hard to know what happened here, because the papers aren't available, and honestly, PACER is a piece of shit to get stuff from anyway. However, I wouldn't

It's hard to know what happened here, because the papers aren't available, and honestly, PACER is a piece of shit to get stuff from anyway. However, I wouldn't believe random tweets. For example, one says: "Notable that though there's no evidence Barrett took part in the hack releasing credit card info judge is determined he did. #FreeBB" This is pretty unlikely, particularly if it was used as a sentencing factor. Every federal judge knows that you can't use facts not proven to a jury or in a plea agreement, to enhance a sentence. This is completely well-settled law now. See United States v. Booker, 543 US 220 (2005), Blakely v. Washington, 542 U.S. 296 (2004) and Apprendi v. New Jersey, 530 U.S. 466 (2000) (Apprendi is a little different in that it says you can't enhance past statutory maximum, but Booker and Blakely make plain you can't enhance at all except using facts admitted by the defendant or proven to a jury)

Alupis 12y ago
The thing that bothers me is he's being sentenced for "aiding" LulzSec and "obstruction" of justice by reporting on and re-tweeting information about their hacking spree. This is the same LulzSec that was being secretly run by the FBI via their turncoat, Sabu, during some of LulzSec's highest profile hacks (such as the Stratfor hack) Also, in addition to his 5 year imprisonment, he's been ordered to pay nearly $900,000 in fines.
- DannyBee 12y ago
  So, he plead guilty to these charges, that's why he's being sentenced for them. He chose not to take his chances and make those arguments.
  - Alupis 12y ago
    My guess is he plead guilty under advisement his case was hopeless. There's a significant likelihood evidence necessary to aide his case is locked away deep inside the FBI. A very a la NSA illegal wiretaps putting people in prison under guise of "confidential informant".
    - specialp 12y ago
      Do you have any cases where NSA illegal wiretaps were used as evidence in court in a standard trial like this against a U.S. citizen? If the FBI said well our evidence is a confidential informant that would not be valid as the defense has a right to cross examine witnesses and evidence. This guy pled guilty. Maybe it was due to fear of courts handling tech cases, or maybe it was due to the fact that there was a large amount of evidence that he committed a crime that was not simply reporting.
      - CamperBob2 12y ago
        Do you have any cases where NSA illegal wiretaps were used as evidence in court in a standard trial like this against a U.S. citizen? Under the doctrine of parallel construction, as revealed in the Snowden disclosures, there is no way for the court to know if illegal NSA wiretaps or other surveillance activities were involved. The fruit of the poison tree is now on sale at your local justice supermarket.
        specialp 12y ago
        By that logic every single case that the FBI prosecutes is fruit of the poison tree. I am in no way in support of NSA activities, but in order to make your claim you need some proof unfortunately. If it were ever proven that the FBI regularly uses NSA warantless wiretaps to aid in convictions of US citizens there will be many cases overturned.
        mentat 12y ago
        Unfortunately that proof is made systematically unavailable, hence the injustice.
        FeeTinesAMady 12y ago
        Every case prosecuted by the FBI ever since parallel construction started is fruit of the poison tree.
  - ingler 12y ago
    He pled guilty to avoid getting reamed even worse. There's no justice here. It's just an exercise in power in order to send a message.
    - DannyBee 12y ago
      So you are aware of all the evidence then? I mean, otherwise this is just complete supposition. Plus, you know, he conceded a lot of the facts in the indictment at the point he tried to have the indictment dismissed, so ...
      - ingler 12y ago
        It goes beyond supposition when the tactics of Federal prosecutors are examined in wider scope. The sentence doesn't fit the crime.
drzaiusapelord 12y ago
I just read through this document: https://freebarrettbrown.org/files/BB_factualresume.pdf https://freebarrettbrown.org/files/BB_factualresume.pdf Sounds like he not only became a lulzsec negotiator and obstructor, he later threatened an FBI agent and well as that agent's children. Uh yeah, the far left wants to make this asshole a hero? You guys need better heroes. Mitnick, Hammond, Ulbricht, Omari, lizard squad, etc. These guys are all pretty much scumbags and clearly criminals from a non-biased perspective. The mental gymnastics of deifying these scumbags is mystifying.
- Foxboron 12y ago
  Please just keep people like Lizard Squad, Ulbricht, Omari and co away from people like Hammond, Mitnick, and Barrett Brown. Two completely different ideologies, and shouldn't be all thrown under one buss.
- nemo 12y ago
  "the far left" While some of his defenders are on the left, some are right-wing libertarians, and I don't think it's really reasonable to make shallow politicized generalizations about who his supporters are. For the record, I am very far to the left and while I think the sentence was a bit over the top, I don't think he was innocent or was a noble person. I'd also like to see all the lizard squad kids (including Omari) nailed hard, and find Ulbricht despicable. I liked Mitnick when I met him, though.

Alupis 12y ago

The thing that bothers me is he's being sentenced for "aiding" LulzSec and "obstruction" of justice by reporting on and re-tweeting information about their hacking spree. This is the same LulzSec that was being secretly run by the FBI via their turncoat, Sabu, during some of LulzSec's highest profile hacks (such as the Stratfor hack) Also, in addition to his 5 year imprisonment, he's been ordered to pay nearly $900,000 in fines.

DannyBee 12y ago
So, he plead guilty to these charges, that's why he's being sentenced for them. He chose not to take his chances and make those arguments.
- Alupis 12y ago
  My guess is he plead guilty under advisement his case was hopeless. There's a significant likelihood evidence necessary to aide his case is locked away deep inside the FBI. A very a la NSA illegal wiretaps putting people in prison under guise of "confidential informant".
  - specialp 12y ago
    Do you have any cases where NSA illegal wiretaps were used as evidence in court in a standard trial like this against a U.S. citizen? If the FBI said well our evidence is a confidential informant that would not be valid as the defense has a right to cross examine witnesses and evidence. This guy pled guilty. Maybe it was due to fear of courts handling tech cases, or maybe it was due to the fact that there was a large amount of evidence that he committed a crime that was not simply reporting.
    - CamperBob2 12y ago
      Do you have any cases where NSA illegal wiretaps were used as evidence in court in a standard trial like this against a U.S. citizen? Under the doctrine of parallel construction, as revealed in the Snowden disclosures, there is no way for the court to know if illegal NSA wiretaps or other surveillance activities were involved. The fruit of the poison tree is now on sale at your local justice supermarket.
      - specialp 12y ago
        By that logic every single case that the FBI prosecutes is fruit of the poison tree. I am in no way in support of NSA activities, but in order to make your claim you need some proof unfortunately. If it were ever proven that the FBI regularly uses NSA warantless wiretaps to aid in convictions of US citizens there will be many cases overturned.
        mentat 12y ago
        Unfortunately that proof is made systematically unavailable, hence the injustice.
        FeeTinesAMady 12y ago
        Every case prosecuted by the FBI ever since parallel construction started is fruit of the poison tree.
- ingler 12y ago
  He pled guilty to avoid getting reamed even worse. There's no justice here. It's just an exercise in power in order to send a message.
  - DannyBee 12y ago
    So you are aware of all the evidence then? I mean, otherwise this is just complete supposition. Plus, you know, he conceded a lot of the facts in the indictment at the point he tried to have the indictment dismissed, so ...
    - ingler 12y ago
      It goes beyond supposition when the tactics of Federal prosecutors are examined in wider scope. The sentence doesn't fit the crime.

drzaiusapelord 12y ago

I just read through this document: https://freebarrettbrown.org/files/BB_factualresume.pdf https://freebarrettbrown.org/files/BB_factualresume.pdf Sounds like he not only became a lulzsec negotiator and obstructor, he later threatened an FBI agent and well as that agent's children. Uh yeah, the far left wants to make this asshole a hero? You guys need better heroes. Mitnick, Hammond, Ulbricht, Omari, lizard squad, etc. These guys are all pretty much scumbags and clearly criminals from a non-biased perspective. The mental gymnastics of deifying these scumbags is mystifying.

Foxboron 12y ago
Please just keep people like Lizard Squad, Ulbricht, Omari and co away from people like Hammond, Mitnick, and Barrett Brown. Two completely different ideologies, and shouldn't be all thrown under one buss.
nemo 12y ago
"the far left" While some of his defenders are on the left, some are right-wing libertarians, and I don't think it's really reasonable to make shallow politicized generalizations about who his supporters are. For the record, I am very far to the left and while I think the sentence was a bit over the top, I don't think he was innocent or was a noble person. I'd also like to see all the lizard squad kids (including Omari) nailed hard, and find Ulbricht despicable. I liked Mitnick when I met him, though.