The man only has one life so I wouldn't expect him to be trying to play a Bitcoin martyr. The feds are pro's at making people take deals they wouldn't normally take. The system is so rigged it it is not funny, especially if you don't have a great legal team and the money to pay them.. The fact that he pleads guilty is in many ways a win for the FEDS and a loss for the little guy who got caught in the wrong place and didn't know the right people.
IDK how much him fighting (successfully) the charges would help bitcoin. I think the case is really more about money laundering laws then anything else.
If anything, the case is about someone who did business and made money off the silk road site regardless of the morality of what was being done. I think the government wants to prosecute as many people who sold on silk road as possible to make others who sell/make money off other similar sites afraid to do business on those sites.
Your point about this mainly being about money laundering is fair and makes sense. My issue is more so about how the court system works to make an example of the little guy. There are far bigger players who get caught laundering money and cooperating with murders and criminals and the people are told they are "to big to fail". The double standard in the court system by the have and have not's is my real point I'm trying to get across. For me this is just a witch hunt to take down some undesirables. Mr Shrem made a bad decision and it caught up with him so don't think I'm calling him an angel that is being attacked for nothing. I'm just interested bigger picture and the tactics used by the feds.