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| Anger at suicide of US Internet act |
| Anger at suicide of US Internet activist
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| UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
, 14-January-2013
2:54:32 AM |
| Angry activists poured scorn on prosecutors on Sunday for leading an overzealous campaign against Internet freedom fighter Aaron Swartz, with his family suggesting it contributed to his suicide.
Swartz, who was just 14 when he co-developed the RSS feeds that are now the norm for publishing frequent updates online and further went on to help launch social news website Reddit, hanged himself in his New York apartment on Friday.
He had been due to stand trial in April for allegedly breaking into a closet at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to plug into the computer network and download millions of academic journal articles from the subscription-only JSTOR service.
Swartz had written openly about suffering periodically from depression, but friends and family suggested the looming trial contributed to his suicide and accused MIT and prosecutors of being overzealous in pursuing their case.
"Aaron's death is not simply a personal tragedy. It is the product of a criminal justice system rife with intimidation and prosecutorial overreach," a family statement said.
"Decisions made by officials in the Massachusetts US Attorney's office and at MIT contributed to his death."
MIT president L. Rafael Reif expressed shock and grief at Swartz's death, and tapped computer science and engineering professor Hal Abelson to lead a "thorough analysis" of MIT's involvement in the JSTOR case.
"I want to express very clearly that I and all of us at MIT are extremely saddened by the death of this promising young man who touched the lives of so many," Reif said in a statement.
"It pains me to think that MIT played any role in a series of events that have ended in tragedy."
Swartz had pleaded not guilty to charges of computer fraud, wire fraud and other crimes carrying a maximum sentence of 35 years in prison and a $1 million fine.
US Attorney Carmen Ortiz, who filed the indictment against Swartz, said at the time:
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