"Headley's crimes easily warranted the federal death penalty, which prosecutors did not seek. No one would have blinked had Headley, 52, been sentenced to multiple centuries behind bars, to ensure that he never again is a free man," the Chicago Tribune said in a stinging editorial, commenting on the way US authorities allowed Headley to escape the noose as well as life term.
"His sentence may appall many Americans: Not death. Nor life in prison. But 35 years. That was the sentence recommended by prosecutors," it noted.
Even former US Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald, in a surprise appearance at the sentencing hearing, urged US District Judge Harry Leinenweber to consider the "unusual nature" of Headley's cooperation with authorities.
This, even though, as Fitzgerald and everyone else acknowledges, Headley was involved in a "very, very heinous crime," the editorial pointed out.
"Leinenweber faced an excruciating choice: how to balance punishing Headley for the evil he'd done, the hundreds he'd helped kill or maim, against the leniency he deserved for assisting authorities to combat international terrorism.
"Through his sentencing, Leinenweber said he wanted to ensure that Headley is "never in a position again to commit a terrorist attack." He should be "under lock and key for the rest of his life."
A 35-year prison term is no guarantee of that, although under federal guidelines Headley will have to serve 85 percent of his sentence, or about 30 years, the paper noted.
It was also skeptical about what the US authorities must have gleaned from Headley.
"We don't know what information Headley has provided to the feds, so we're not in a position to second-guess the judge. We accept prosecutors' word that Headley's extensive cooperation was invaluable," it said.
"Nothing that happened in federal court Thursday limits his culpability. Nothing ever will," the editorial concluded.
