There is no arguing that the final decision regarding any flight rests with the PIC. , however it is also obvious that there is no shortage of pilots who will compromise under pressure either overt or insidious and bend or break the rules in companies that have that culture.
This pilot has been punished for his wrongdoing and will probably never fly commercially again.
A better use of our energy would be to identify why these pilots are allowed to push the envelope of risk until some of them finally wreck an airplane often with loss of life.
Am I to believe that these pilots operate this way and no one has any idea that they are taking these risks?