Comment by throwaway2037

    > That said I would expect clemency in the sentencing.

I feel the same. Intent and impact matters. Intent: It is up to the judge to decide if the defendant's intent was pure/non-violent -- I believe it is. Impact: From the news, we can see the material never reached the defendant, and it was safely captured. So the actual impact is zero. (To be clear: I am not apologizing for him breaking the law!)

This is a great opportunity for the attorney general office to recommend a special punishment: A long suspended sentence (5 years is reasonable) with no jail time and a X-year (X=1?) commitment from the defendant to participate in a public education campaign.