Texas entrepreneur files lawsuit against U.S. Attorney General, seeking protection for upcoming crypto crowdfunding project

On January 17th, according to CoinDesk, blockchain entrepreneur Michael Lewellen has filed a lawsuit against US Attorney General Merrick Garland, requesting that the court rule that his upcoming cryptocurrency crowdfunding project, Pharos, does not violate laws on unlicensed money transmission. Lewellen alleges that the Department of Justice's prosecution of cryptocurrency software developers (such as Tornado Cash developer Roman Storm and Samourai Wallet co-founder Keonne Rodriguez) violates the First and Fifth Amendments of the US Constitution and is contradictory to the Department of Justice's previous public statements that developers are not considered money transmitters. Lewellen's Pharos project is an Ethereum-based cryptocurrency crowdfunding platform that uses smart contracts to ensure that projects that do not successfully raise funds automatically return the money, while also protecting the privacy of donors.