Why would Google keep a copy of your mail if your account was deactivated for 6 years? Isn't that asking a bit much considering you were the one that broke the ToS?
My hope that the tool is activated for deactivated accounts is more for people that suffer the same fate today - if they lose all access to their account, that they at least be able to get their data/life back.
Does anyone thing that Google isn't keeping a copy of every bit of data they have on everybody that has ever used any of their systems? I cannot imagine they would ever throw data away. Even if they restrict the end user from it doesn't mean that they destroy the data for their own use.
At least according to the page I get when I try to log in, they still have the data: https://support.google.com/accounts/answer/40695?hl=en&ctx=c...
I don't disagree that Google was within their right to shutdown my account, but it seems silly that something I did at 19 has gone on this long.