Prosecutors' deal for Swartz: Felony plea and three months in jail

Reading this only magnifies the unmitigated disgust I feel towards Carmen Ortiz and her subordinates. Unfortunately, the only constructive thing we can do is make an example of them, just as they tried to make an example of Aaron.<p>Help put their records as prosecutors on-line where everyone can see them.<p><a href="http://www.plainsite.org/asymptote/" rel="nofollow">http://www.plainsite.org/asymptote/</a><p>The goal is a page like this for every prosecutor in the country:<p><a href="http://www.plainsite.org/flashlight/attorney.html?id=69049" rel="nofollow">http://www.plainsite.org/flashlight/attorney.html?id=69049</a>

Choose: spend a million or more defending yourself <i>or</i> go to jail and be labelled a felon.<p>Damned if you do and damned if you don't, guilt doesn't even enter into it you lose either way.

Rehashed content from a HuffPo piece citing the "impressions" of "anonymous staffers", plus something we already knew (months of prison time, 13 felony convictions). This is at least the second story to show up today linkjacked from that HuffPo piece, by the way.<p>Definitely a great excuse for us all to beat each other over the head with pointless flame wars.<p>What's crazy is that there is as much heat on this thread as there was on the <i>excellent</i> WBUR piece that took on Ortiz' record in MA:<p><a href="http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5264200" rel="nofollow">http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5264200</a><p>Go listen to that, instead of yelling at people on this thread. Ortiz' office is a mess. People who recommended her for her appointment are backing away from her. WBUR did actual reporting to back this up, rather than playing telephone with HuffPo.<p>Flagged.

It does not change the fundamental problem: "Take this bargain and waive your right to a trial, or face &#60;insert insane possible punishment here&#62;".

Prison is a ridiculous punishment for most crimes.<p>It does little to prevent crime; it does little to prevent recidivism; it does nothing to rehabilitate people; it's fantastically expensive.<p>There are a small number of people who need to be locked away to protect society.<p>Putting Swartz in jail was just an opportunity to wave a flag - "Strong on crime, strong on the causes of crime" and all that nonsense.

I find the Fed's stance a bit strange. "Just" three months incarcerated and a permanent felony record or try your luck against a 35 year sentence. Meanwhile, the state of Massachusetts was prepared to drop the case entirely as was JStore. Unbelievable.

Plea bargaining shouldn't be completely thrown out. It provides a way to save costs, gives prosecutors an important tool bring down criminal organizations by allowing them to bargain for testimony against the principals from peripheral members, and gives defendants who are genuinely remorseful a way to reduce their sentences.<p>But the Supreme Court should take a look at where the Constitutional boundaries for plea bargaining practices lie. Having a maximum multiplier would be a good idea: If a plea bargain for N days in jail is offered, no more than 3N days can be sought at trial. (Of course there has to be some way to convert different punishments into equivalent "currency" for this conversion.) The point is to keep defendants from pleading out due to pure risk management considerations, which makes a mockery of the justice system by turning it into a high-stakes poker game, and deprives defendants of due process by coercing them into giving up their rights.

"Justice Department lawyers believed Swartz's "Guerrilla Open Access Manifesto" justified their bringing of felony charges because it demonstrated his "malicious intent"<p>This is <i>insane</i>. Absolutely insane...I know this was intimated before, but to hear it confirmed... You can be convicted of a felony for expressing an opinion about how to improve goverment? I have stayed mostly silent about this until now, but this is just beyond the pale.<p>Forget <i>impeachment</i>- Ortiz and the other prosecutor (forget his name) should be perp-walking for this. Their punishment should be public and severe enough that no one else in their position will think they can do this with impunity.

I love how if Carmen Ortiz actually goes to trial they will say things like "Of course, the Government just wants to make an example out of me" and put on some martyr act. Hey, remember when you were doing the exact same thing before? Yeah, thats what you're being punished for...

This needs to get more attention (even more than it is already getting). This sort of blatant disregard for anything even approximating "justice" is disgusting and has place in a developed country (it has no place anywhere, really, but a developed country has absolutely no excuse).

A felony charge would have seriously impacted his ability to travel. This would have impacted his earning prospects both as an entrepreneur and as a researcher.<p>For example travel to Canada: <a href="http://www.wikihow.com/Travel-to-Canada-with-a-Felony-Charge" rel="nofollow">http://www.wikihow.com/Travel-to-Canada-with-a-Felony-Charge</a><p>From that page, it can take up to a year and $1000 to apply for the visa for entry.<p>The data sharing between the US and other governments means that you can't keep your convictions secret either.<p>For example, Canada is hooked into the US databases, and they can and do retrieve information from them.

According to HuffPo's sources there was also a "saving face" element to the prosecution:<p><i>"Some congressional staffers left the briefing with the impression that prosecutors believed they needed to convict Swartz of a felony that would put him in jail for a short sentence in order to justify bringing the charges in the first place, according to two aides with knowledge of the briefing."</i>

A felony conviction and jail time is akin to a career death sentence for most people. You'll never get a decent job again.

It is hard to accept an unfair plea bargin like this, but it is typically your best move.<p>Federal prosecutors typically hold all the cards.

So what do you do if you think you're innocent? Take the 3 months jail deal? Some justice that is.