An Obama-appointed judge made light of a hacker’s “potential” as a light sentence was handed down following repeated infiltration of government systems, including those of the U.S. Supreme Court.
Nearly four years after the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization opinion was leaked, it remains likely that the public may never officially know who was responsible. But the latest sentence for U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell suggested little would come from it if we did, as a man charged with hacking the Supreme Court at least 25 times was given 12 months of probation.
Friday, 25-year-old Nicholas Moore of Tennessee appeared in court for his sentencing hearing following his January guilty plea in connection with hacking the court’s electronic filing system along with the accounts of Americorps and the Veterans Administration Health System.
The guilty plea pertained to a Class A misdemeanor of fraud activity in connection with computers, punishable by up to a year in prison and a $100,000 fine.
Instead, as defense attorney Eugene Ohm had argued for the single year of probation and told the court, “He does have potential,” Howell handed down the light sentence and made light of the remarks about “potential,” saying that was apparent by his ability to hack into government systems, the Hill detailed.
Included among Howell’s greatest hits as an apparent judicial activist, the Obama-appointed jurist had overruled the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) taking over U.S. Institute of Peace, contending the leaders were “illegally-installed,” and barred the government from enforcing President Donald Trump’s order that the former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton-connected law firm Perkins Coie — responsible for hiring Fusion GPS and leading to the creation of the Steele dossier — have its security clearances revoked.
“I made a mistake,” Moore told the court on Friday as he was said to have posted screenshots of account information from the government entities. “I am truly sorry. I respect laws, and I want to be a good citizen.”
Similarly suggesting that the Tennessee hacker deserved leniency while arguing for three years probation, the court filing for the defendant, whose account had the handle “ihackedthegovernment,” described Moore as a “vulnerable young man with long-term disabilities, limited financial means, and virtually no employment experience or opportunities” with the potential to “redirect his interests … toward a more productive path.”
“Moore’s struggles with his mental health are well-documented and weigh against incarceration when considered along with the severity of Moore’s conduct and willingness to take responsibility for his actions,” continued the government’s sentencing memorandum as Assistant U.S. Attorney Mary Elizabeth Bultemeier had argued, “Moore seems to have acted more to show off to online acquaintances than to leverage the accounts he accessed for financial gain.”
As for the lack of financial restitution, the case had been made that the victims, including a U.S. Marine Corps veteran, “did not sustain financial losses.”
Native of Brooklyn, NY, Kevin Haggerty is a graduate of Hunter College where he studied Cultural Anthropology and Geography. An avid reader and truth seeker, he currently resides in Texas with his wife and their dog and, when he isn't researching current events and their impacts, you'll find him spending time with friends and family or working on his next novel.
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