When the government and the corporate world share a dread over something the rest of us value, and they act in concert against it, then very bad things can happen to self-governing republics.

Read more: Breaking Someone With The Law - Esquire http://www.esquire.com/blogs/politics/The_Case_Of_Aaron_Swartz#ixzz2IDyAlRU7

I truly hope this signals an end to Ortiz's political career because she is clueless. Sending this kid to prison was just plain wrong. He should have paid a penalty but it should have been probation for a misdemeanor not prison for 13 felonies.

This is (again) all about the Buck. This bright, talented, politically astute young man had "stolen" some intellectual property of theirs and put it on the Internet. Swartz made no money from this. But MIT was PISSED. (They didn't want this to happen, they say) WTF did they think would happen. In the passive agressive way of the Acadamy, they told the Federal Prosecutor, then sat back wringing their hands, "We didn't know he'd be in that much trouble!!",  we don't want to prosecute anymore! MIT did a Pontious Pilot, knowing the Feds would pursue prosecution. The Feds put Swartz through a meat grinder, and he cracked. Plenty of Shame to go around here. All becuse MIT didn't make some money of work that most laypersons would find useless. All about the Buck. Can Ortiz, then let's look at which wuss at MIT started this travesty. He or She should have their feet held to the fire, just like they had done to Swartz.

Carmen you have blood on your hands and your husband is a first-rate d-nozzle.  Your career is OVAH!

A very sad commentary. Reminds me of the psychology experiment where the test takers give electric shocks because someone tells them to do so. More than one person lost their moral compass over a young genius doing an experiment with computers. Sounds like these "career prosecutors" have been at it too long.

A letter in today's Globe criticized Swartz for his inappropriate "statement" in taking his life.  To which I responded: The writer deeply misunderstands the suicide of Mr. Swartz.  It seems very clear that it was a despairing response to relentless prosecutorial overreach.  When the full power of the State is brought down on a young, idealistic man, fired by an extraordinary intellect and deeply held moral beliefs, this can be the result.  Mr. Swartz was not a mafia don who sees jail time as part of his lifestyle or job description.  He was not a Buddhist monk acting on a religious belief to call attention to injustice in 1960s Vietnam.  This was a brilliant but sensitive kid who was to be deprived of his freedom and cast into prison system inhabited by violent men and sexual predators.  For what?  Giving unauthorized access to scientific papers!  Prosecutors can become enamored of their own power and their own rectitude, losing sight of their own humanity.  Was this kid just a notch on some DA's career belt?  That is my assumption until shown otherwise.

Just following orders. Isn't that what the Nazi guards said too? You can't the blood off your hands that easily Ms. McBeth.

The shoe is on the other foot now, with the prosecutor being publicly hounded for her role in the death of a computer prodigy-turned-cyberactivist. He'd been in his early teens when he developed ground-breaking technology now widely used on the World Wide Web. As a young man, he fought for public access to Internet content. This case never should have been prosecuted the way it was. She ruined him financially, branded him as an accused felon, and wanted to send him to prison for what amounted to a protest involving free speech, NOT theft. How does she like it now -- her own public image in tatters far worse than anything she did to Aaron Swartz, with her under scrutiny in all the mainstream media around the country, from newspapers to network television. Will the President fire her? Probably not, despite tens of thousands of people signing a White House petition asking him to do so. But any ambitions she might have harbored to become U.S. Attorney General some day are ruined. Justice is served. Karma is a real you-know-what.

As I read Counterfeit Access Device and Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (18 U.S.C.A. § 1030), passed by Congress in 1984 and the National Information Infrastructure Act of 1996 as title II of the Economic Espionage Act of 1996, Pub. L. No. 104-294, 110 Stat. 3488. The US Attorney could have charged him with Computer Trespass, and got a clear conviction. Most good prosecutor after reading the law will then evaluate the case will bring a charge that they are certain will result in a conviction. To overcharge could be deemed as prosecutorial over reach. What did Aaron Swartz really do? In protest, he spoofed a MAC address and was able to download academic research documents that he and others feel should be available to the public at no charge, why? Because the research that produced those documents were pay for by taxpayers’ dollars. Did he sell the documents for money? No, he made them available to anyone who needed then for free. That being said, is it fair to blame the US Attorney for his death? This young man was already on the emotional edge and this case pushed him over that edge that probably exsisted throughout his young life. She represented her client with zeal she prosecuted Aaron Swartz to the full extent of the law and that was her political mistake. Unfortunately, with a 38,000 signature petition delivered to the White House yesterday her opposition is more powerful than she could have ever imagined. She may stay on as US Attorney but whatever political aspirations she might have had are gone.

I know what world Carmen Ortiz lives in and its a very dirty little world that is pulling off the largest dishonest service fraud this nation has ever seen. 1 Court House Way is an ongoing crime scene and Ortiz chooses to not prosecute tax paid public servants who freely break criminal federal law and, also, allows them to flaunt their no need to fear consequence. The folly of our youth where no harm comes to any person is not a crime that deserves years in prison; the only threat this young man posed was his God given brilliant mind that could have altered, for the better, a corrupt government. However, the theft of life, liberty and property through malicious prosecutions and civil pretense litigation where the CLERKS and some of the judges in these courts collude with attorneys, including prosecutors, to deprive rights where the means to an end is racketeering to promote profit for the corrupt over truth and justice does warrant years in prison. The entire justice system has been delegitimized by these alleged criminals and the tax payer is forced to support these corrupt fools where they have turned the houses of justice into nothing more than their own private playground! Where are the mail fraud, wire fraud and violations of the U.S. Computer Fraud and Abuse Act charges against the tax paid public servants working in these federal courts where they habitually render fraudulent judgments and manipulate dockets with computers paid for by the tax payer to obstruct justice and then send their bogus documents across state lines via the US Mail? Where are the RICO charges? Not only does the US Attorney hold responsibility for Aaron’s death but you can bet she was pressured by the Administrative Offices of the US Courts to go after Aaron because he messed with their precious corrupt PACER System. Aaron was part of the movement that wanted access to court documents free to everyone; access to court documents means more than an opinion rendered by the court (sometimes rendered by the court). NOW THERE IS THE PROBLEM – how soon would the world be aware of the number of fraudulent documents routinely entered into PACER by corrupt court staff, and yes, corrupt judges with world-wide free access to ALL federal court documents? How soon would it be before the world became aware that the US Courts are not about truth and justice but simply a huge racketeering enterprise set up to pad the pockets of select “elite” attorneys? Publishing for view the corrupt decisions that come from these courts on justia.com without access to the documents filed by the parties is a huge scam promoted and protected by the US Courts. The fact that the tax payer has to support these alleged criminals while they pull off the largest dishonest service fraud scheme ever seen in the USA is more than clearly a good reason to torture this young man until he killed himself because they knew damn well no jury of his peers would ever convict him. All of you on 1 Court House Way and all of you working and providing dishonest service in the US Courts throughout this country are sick psychopaths; you all belong in prison! I say all because if not directly involved these tax paid public servants aid and abet; cover-up and protection of court staff who routinely obstruct justice and deprive rights to rob life, liberty and property is routine by court staff not directly participating, routine for the US Marshal and routine for the Clerks of the Courts. These corrupt tax paid scum are in fact domestic terrorist who have delegitimized an entire Branch of OUR Government!! We have to keep faith that our District and Circuit Judges are not complicit but it is not looking good. The FBI first harassed Aaron over his downloading of multiple court documents and "compromise" to the system. PACER gives free access to judicial opinions, and citizens don’t have to pay if they look at less than $10 worth of filings during the billing quarter; BIG FREAKING DEAL—THEY LET YOU READ FOR FREE THEIR CORRUPT DECISIONS!!!! So let’s RECAP on the corrupt and make public access to ALL COURT RECORDS fly full force. I find it interesting that when I first had access to file in the electronic filing system the very first page I accessed had a warning not to use the RECAP system.(the system initiated where court documents would be free to the public is called RECAP – PACER BACKWARDS) So in actuality Carmen Ortiz not only needs to be removed from office but she belongs in front of a Grand Jury along with the entire 1 Court House Way crowd.  http://www.aarongreenspan.com/writing/essay.html?id=83  http://www.scribd.com/tired_of_corruption IMO 1 Court House Way Boston, Massachusetts needs to be converted into a federal prison and no one—ABSOLUTELY NO ONE—who works there should be allowed to leave! Read the full court file of the government’s prosecution of open government hacktivist Aaron Swartz http://watchdogblog.dallasnews.com/2013/01/read-the-full-court-file-of-the-governments-prosecution-of-open-government-hacktivist-aaron-swartz.html/

How is it that this account of this Obama administration fiasco does not mention that Ortiz and/or her U.S. Attorney office staff reportedly dropped the charges that Swartz faced. . . after his suicide became a public issue? Ortiz was "traveling" and thus hampered in getting this self-serving statement out until 1045 p.m. Wednesday. . . Why didn't she have her devoted hubby write it? 38,000 people want this woman dumped . . . what a great idea. Imagine what she'd be like as a governor . . .

Another case of unjust government overreach. With tens of thousands laws on the books and hundreds more added every year they can make anyone a criminal if they feel like it, and suggest 50 year sentence for Swartz's political activism is part of further attack on freedom in this country.

I am glad a large number of people agree that Ortiz made a bad move with her bullying in this case and hope that people's memory won't be too short to forget this when she tries to take a higher office position to further stamp on citizens with disproportional government responses.

So reminiscent of Les Miz (or Les Mis in the film version spelling). Inspector Javert (aka US Atty Ortiz) chases after Jean Valjean (aka Swartz) who was branded a criminal for stealing a loaf of bread for his sister's starving family. No real sense of Justice or proportion.

What Swartz did was wrong, but her pursuit of the case seemed disproportionate with the crime.

Ortiz is SO candid in her statement that she places any blame at the feet of a sentencing judge.

Yeah, this is just like Les Miserables.  Ms. Ortiz and her brainiac husband probably even saw the film version, each welling up with tears at the appropriate places.  And their combined compassion or empathy or insight into what has been done to the Swartz family is, exactly, ZERO.  pathetic.

Don't anybody worry. Ortiz won't be running for governor. This was a serious judgment error that will follow her for a number of years. She might not get fired as district attorney, but she's at a dead end right now.

Maybe a few years from now people will have forgotten, or it won't seem important when an opponent brings it up. Of course, she hasn't admitted any faulty judgment so we could see more of it in the future. I respect people more when they admit that they've made a mistake.