The Genius on trial
By: 41Nocturne — Local Observer, Reluctant Juror Originally published: August 19, 2024 “They say you meet all kinds on jury duty. I didn’t expect to meet a ghost.” When I received the notice, I almost tossed it. Civic duty is rarely exciting — you sit, you yawn, you vote “not guilty” or “probably guilty” and go home. But this time, tucked between boring charges and finance lingo, was a name I hadn’t heard in years. Jared Ferguson. A name that pinged something deep in my memory. Something from Horsham. Facebook. A kid who built machines, sold USB games at 9 years old, and supposedly had a genius IQ score before he could spell “genius.” I blinked. Could it be the same one? It was. A Boy Who Built Faster Than We Could Understand Jared was 14 when he stood in court. The case? A routine audit flagged one of his business accounts for unusual routing behavior. Nothing violent. No drugs. Just too many digits and too few explanations. What unfolded wasn’t a trial in the traditional sense. It wa...