The U.S. attorney’s office filed a motion Wednesday to dismiss the bulk of its criminal case against a Dallas man who has claimed to be the spokesman for the hacking group Anonymous.
Prosecutors are asking a federal judge to dismiss all but one of the 12 charges against Barrett Brown in a case accusing him of trafficking in data,
His defense had recently submitted a lengthy motion
“The activities prohibited include those of everyday members of the public desiring to conduct research on the Internet, cyber security researchers who wish to analyze and prevent cyber-attacks and journalists who wish to perform routine press activities such as newsgathering and verification of sources,” said defense attorney Ahmed Ghappour in the motion.
http://crimeblog.dallasnews.com/...
For background on the arrest, as well as Brown's history, see my diary from 2012
http://www.dailykos.com/...
There was also a lengthy profile on him, and his case, in Rolling Stone last September
http://www.rollingstone.com/...
2:25 PM PT: Actually, it appears only 11 counts were dropped. Here is the actual legal document:
https://www.documentcloud.org/...
And for those who really want to get into the weeds - the 43 page motion from his lawyers that led to it.
http://freebarrettbrown.org/...