Bad things happen to good people, and vice versa. The charge of Interfering with a flight crew is appropriate, in the scheme of things, and having the CEO go to bat for you will help. He will get help, and his life will change, hopefully for the better.
I'm having a hard time looking for something to criticize in this event. Everyone involved seemed to do the right things, pretty much. Well, some of the posts, heh........?