Sherman Martin Austin (born April 10, 1983) is an American anarchist and musician who was arrested for inflammatory content on his website and subsequently convicted.
[6] On August 4, 2003, after entering a guilty plea under an agreement with the prosecutor, Austin was sentenced in U.S. District Court by Judge Stephen V. Wilson to 12 months in a federal jail, a $2000 fine, and three years probation, and as well as other restrictions.
[8] Austin was released one month early in July 2004 with 3 years of probation which prohibited him from having access to a computer or knowingly associating with individuals who "espouse violence for political change".
[9] In February 2006, Austin released a statement on Indymedia containing claims that the National Security Agency had installed illegal wiretaps before and during the investigation against him, and that the NSA, along with "other higher-ups in the government", arranged three separate attempts to assassinate him.
"[2] Carnegie Mellon University professor David S. Touretzky posted a mirror of the Reclaim Guide on his Web site in reaction to the FBI raid on Austin, in order to prompt public debate.
As Touretzky notes on his website, his own distribution of the material does not violate the statute because it is not performed with the intention or knowledge that the information be used to commit any illegal violent acts.
But he is deeply troubled by the way the government handled the case: "Did the amateurish bomb-making information, written by a minor, that Mr. Austin allowed to appear on his web site pose any significant threat to public safety?