First, as others have stated, the acid was intended for insertion into the air conditioning system to create a terrible smell, not to disfigure any person.
Second, this person pled guilty to "conspiracy", which means he didn't act alone. It may well be that the prosecutor arranged this deal in order to more forcefully prosecute his associate in crime.
We may not have heard the last of this case.
The use of any chemical in an attack on people would fall under the “CBW” clause of the anti-terrorism acts, esp. those amendments (If I remember correctly) to the Patriot Act.
If Charney didn’t plead to a deal and this sentence is correct, then I smell a read on the Bench.
“Conspiracy” to commit a violent act, is, in and of itself, a felony.
You might be right, this punk certainly has the rat-fink look about him.