Kleiman vs. Wright Trial: Is Bitcoin's Founder Autistic?
The Ira Kleiman vs. Craig Wright trial continues Monday and a Miami jury will soon decide the legal owner of nearly $69 billion in Bitcoin as well as the legal identity of Satoshi Nakamoto, author of the Bitcoin white paper. Ira Kleiman's is the brother of a man Wright claims worked with him on the creation of Bitcoin. Dave Kleiman passed away in 2014.
The trial should be winding down as the Thanksgiving Day holiday is fast approaching in the US on Thursday.
On Monday, it is believed that Dr. Wright will return to the stand.
Friday was a short day with only two witnesses called.
David Kuharcik, Dave Kleiman’s friend and accountant, was the first witness to take the stand, followed by Dr. Ami Klin, a psychologist who studies autism.
Kuharcik confirmed that he was Dave Kleiman’s accountant, that none of the tax returns he worked on before the year 2019 mentioned Bitcoin, and that he never issued a K-1 tax document—a form that partners in a business receive—to Dr. Craig Wright.
Wright is pictured here with Gambling911.com founder Chris Costigan
Plaintiff lawyer Kyle Roche cross-examined Kuharcik and emphasized one main point: that the IRS did not release guidance about Bitcoin taxation until 2014, which Kuharcik confirmed was true.
Dr. Klin is the doctor who examined Craig. His testimony continues on Monday. Klin is the first chief of autism and related disorders at the Marcus Autism Center, a wholly owned subsidiary of Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta.
“I was asked to determine if Dr. Wright has autism and how it impacts his behavior in public settings including a court of law,” said Dr. Klin (pictured below).
After examining Dr. Wright, Dr. Klin determined that Dr. Wright has autism and highly intellectual—a combination many refer to as Asperger’s. Dr. Klin also noted that autism was usually diagnosed in children as early as 5 years old these days, but when Dr. Wright was that age/growing up, cases of autism in highly intellectual individuals were more likely to go undetected.
McGovern grilled Dr. Klin for over an hour, but the gist of his testimony was that all signs point to Dr. Wright being very intellectual and autistic and this affects how he experiences the world and acts in different situations.
A cross examination of Klin tried to establish that his methodology was flawed and therefore, his diagnosis of Dr. Wright is invalid.
Patrick Thompson of CoinGeek claims that, while Klin provided some compelling testimony, "he took way too long to make a point he could have communicated in 20 minutes."
He added that Klin's testimony did help to bolster the defense's position, but "the jury fell asleep while he did so".
A recap of Friday's testimony can be found below.
- Aaron Goldstein, Gambling911.com
