How is this not a crime? It they can come over you from downloading off JSTOR using legitimate access, why is this person still employed at the NSA rather than behind bars?
It is. But a crime does not need to be punished if those that commit it are powerful enough.
People in the NSA know lots of secrets of everybody. They know if the president has a mistress. They know if members of congress or their family do take drugs. They know who is corrupt and who does not. They know all the mistakes people did for getting where they are.
Remember that the NSA records and stores all telephone conversations so they can years later analyze and make sense of it.
So telling the person not to be a bad boy again is the best solution for everyone involved. Angry employees are not good here.
On the contrary they're good for everybody.
That's amazing that you know this, when it isn't mentioned in the official report about exactly what things they look up.
Obviously at any big organization, you will get misbehaving employees. But the way you prevent misuse and handle incidents defines whether it's a major issue or just a minor annoyance.
What possible use could this person serve after they've proven they had no qualms willfully and grossly misusing their position of power? How could they keep such a person employed?