Linus says Carmen Ortiz is lying
Linus is dead wrong on this.  We have independent confirmation of everything that Ortiz said from the Boston Globe's interview with Aaron's defense attorney.The maximum statutory penalty for the original 4 indictments was 35 years.  The prosecutor was planning to seek 6-7 years.  There were two plea bargains offered, one was 4 months and no disputing the period, the other was 6 months but the defense attorney would be allowed to try to convince the judge to lower it.  (The judge, of course, is not bound to follow the plea bargain.)  And the average cost of defending one of these is $1.5 million, which is money Aaron did not have and could not raise.