The thing is, instead of shutting the site down right away, the FBI temporarily moved Playpen to its own server in Virginia and deployed a network investigative technique (NIT) in order to identify those logging in. Michaud's defense team now argues that by doing so, the FBI became the distributor of an "untold" amount of illegal material.
"There is no law enforcement exemption, or statutory exemption for the distribution of child pornography," Colin Fieman, one of the federal public defenders filing the motion to dismiss the indictment claimed during a phone interview earlier this week, Motherboard reported.
Fieman and Linda Sullivan, who is also representing Michaud, argued that if the inquiry methods that supposedly identified their client "cannot be reconciled with fundamental expectations of decency and fairness," then the indictment should be simply thrown out.
According to the lawyers, it is unclear how the "government can possibly justify the massive distribution of child pornography that it accomplished in this case."
Neither the Department of Justice, nor the FBI commented on the issue.
The defense team soon expects to receive a detailed list of the number of child porn materials on Playpen which were distributed while it was being run from an FBI server.
