Caroline Ellison, the former CEO of Alameda Research, has her sentencing hearing set for September 24, 2024, at 3:00 p.m. EDT.
During last year’s trial, she testified against her boss, Sam Bankman-Fried. She claimed he directed her to commit fraud and hide the true financial situation of both FTX and Alameda from lenders. Bankman-Fried was found guilty on all seven charges he faced and received a 25-year prison sentence.
Ellison will be the third major figure linked to the collapsed exchange to be sentenced. Earlier this year, Ryan Salame, the CEO of FTX Digital Markets, was sentenced to 7.5 years in prison.
Nishad Singh and Gary Wang, also former executives at FTX, are scheduled for sentencing on October 30 and November 20, respectively.
As of now, neither the Department of Justice nor Ellison’s attorneys have submitted recommendations for her sentencing. However, her legal team has asked Judge Lewis Kaplan for permission to redact some information from her sentencing memo. This includes the names of character witnesses, irrelevant medical information, and details about her address and personal life.
In their filing, they noted, “Ms. Ellison has been the focus of intense media scrutiny and Internet fascination since the outset of this case.” They expressed concern for her friends, stating that they should not face harassment for supporting her in court.
Ellison also wants to redact medical information related to “planned and contemplated medical treatments” from her journal entries. The memo argues that this information is irrelevant and not formal diagnostic data.
On Tuesday, the judge granted the motion but allowed third parties to request the names of those who wrote letters in support of Ellison. He stated, “Motion granted without prejudice to any supported application by a non-party for access.” If someone requests this information, it will be up to the defendant to justify why access should remain restricted.
Inner City Press, led by Matthew Russell Lee, has already filed a letter opposing the redaction of these names. They referenced the judge’s previous decision to release the names of Bankman-Fried’s bond suretors.