[masklinn]

> Surely he did have an option to "get off without pleading guilty" - to be found not guilty by a jury of his peers.

1. That would have bankrupted him anyway.

2. He was guilty, as far as the law book is concerned.

[tankenmate]

I'm not sure but weren't all the charges he was accused of require mens rea?

[nitrogen]

Maybe a Massachusetts jury would be better, but I would generally expect the alleged fact that Aaron hid his face from a camera with a bike helmet (sorry, can't remember where I read this) to be enough to convince most juries of ill intent, given that most people seem to equate "sneaky" with "wrong."