The ridiculous part is trying to slap him with 35 years in prison (worse than murder in many cases) when the victim, JSTOR, chose not to even press charges.
No one tried to slap him with 35 years in prison. If the prosecution was able to win on all counts, and convince the court that Swartz had caused a very high amount of monetary damages, he was looking at around 7 years.
See Orin Kerr's detailed look at the charges and the possible sentences at [1].
If he opted for a plea bargain, he was looking at 3 months.
See Orin Kerr's detailed look at the charges and the possible sentences at [1].
If he opted for a plea bargain, he was looking at 3 months.
[1] http://www.volokh.com/2013/01/16/the-criminal-charges-agains...