Kim Dotcom will finally be allowed to review details of the U.S. federal case against him ahead of an extradition hearing (scheduled for March) after a ruling in New Zealand court.
Dotcom’s lawyers have won a number of battles, freeing up cash seized during his arrest and relaxing the terms of his bail.
He stands accused by U.S. prosecutors of racketeering and money laundering by facilitating millions of illegal downloads of copyrighted material on his site. Dotcom claims he cannot be held responsible for those who chose to make illegal downloads on his site in violation of Megaupload’s Terms of Service.
Public support for Megaupload’s founder continues to grow, as evidence mounts suggesting police may have abused their authority on behalf of the FBI. Many have weighed in with comments about the various abuses of authority displayed by authorities throughout the case.
Law Professor at Santa Clara University School of Law, Eric Goldman, argued that that the Megaupload prosecution is a “depressing display of abuse of government authority” that ignores basic constitutional rights in order to protect private commercial interests.
“The government’s prosecution of Megaupload demonstrates the implications of the government acting as a proxy for private commercial interests. The government is using its enforcement powers to accomplish what most copyright owners haven’t been willing to do in civil court,” said Goldman, “The government’s further insistence that all user data, even legitimate data, should be destroyed is even more shocking. Destroying the evidence not only screws over the legitimate users, but it may make it impossible for Megaupload to mount a proper defense. It’s depressing our government isn’t above such cheap tricks in its zeal to win.”
