> Mr. Cassidy could face $250,000 worth of penalty (excluding fines) for $1,500 worth of crime.

To state that the reason the maximum is 5 years is because the item was religious in nature, then ignore that fact when calculating the cost of the offense tells me this person is starting from a conclusion and working backwards. By this methodology, conspiracy to commit murder should get no jail time since the "cost" is $0.

I'm not saying 5 years would be fair in this instance, just that obviously this is about more than the raw monetary cost...