30s Summary
An Arkansas judge has issued a temporary restraining order, halting officials’ attempts to shut down a cryptocurrency mining business owned by a US citizen of Chinese origin. The order follows a lawsuit against Jones Eagle, related to Acts 636 and 174 which prohibit properties owned by companies or individuals linked with the Chinese government and foreign businesses owning digital asset mining operations respectively. Owner Qimin “Jimmy” Chen, has argued that he is being unfairly targeted due to his background. A court hearing will discuss the extension of the restraining order after 14 days.
Full Article
A federal judge in Little Rock, Arkansas, at least temporarily, put a halt to certain Arkansas officials who are trying to stop a U.S. citizen, originally from China, from running his cryptocurrency mining business. On November 25, bigwig Judge Kristine Baker gave out a temporary restraining order as part of a lawsuit in Arkansas directed at Jones Eagle, a cryptocurrency mining company near Dewitt, New York, as reported by the Arkansas Advocate.
The lawsuit revolves around two specific laws, labeled as Act 636 of 2023 and Act 174 of 2024. These laws have their sights set on businesses and property owned by people from China. Act 636 doesn’t allow companies or people linked with the Chinese government to own property in Arkansas, while Act 174 stops foreign businesses from owning operations that mine digital assets.
The state claimed in the lawsuit that a guy named Qimin “Jimmy” Chen, who’s from China, owned the crypto mining operation and they want it shut down for good. Despite that, the defendant, who’s actually a U.S. citizen living in New York, asked for the restraining order because he said he’s been unfairly targeted because of his background.
According to the legal paperwork, Chen has a big chunk of ownership in the cryptocurrency mining business, which goes by the name of Eagle Asset Holding. This temporary stop will be in action for about 14 days, after which a courtroom talk will take place to discuss extending the restraining order to continue blocking Arkansas from going after the citizen.
Chen’s lawyer, Alex Jones, said this restraining order and potential injunction will stop further harm to his client while they prep for a full-blown court battle. They plan to argue the laws are overstepping their bounds and just aren’t constitutional.
Chen shared that he previously had handed over documents to prove to the attorney general that his crypto mining business event wasn’t on farming land. He tried to meet with state officials about his U.S. citizenship status, but they didn’t want to chat with him. The Attorney General, Tim Griffin, stated, “I’ve been looking into a bunch of these crypto mining businesses and simply searching for the facts, but not all of these businesses have been fully cooperative.”