Based on the law, since it was unsolicited and they charged him from another state, it sorta becomes a federal offense. As for the 9 years, that's what the jury called for. He was after all sending out litterally millions of e-mails per day. At the time of his arrest, he was one of the top 10 spammers in the world. In my opinion, it serves him right, might get people to take a look at what they are doing, maybe slow spam up a little.