He was a spy, but I guess the distinction is about what information he was after. He wasn’t trying to get information on U.S. weapons or strategies, he was looking for information that we had about other countries’ weapons and strategies. Still espionage, but the main purpose was not intended to harm our country.
As for executing him, that isn’t really done with spies anymore. They are more valuable as bargaining chips, in case one of our spies gets caught, or we need something else from another country. You can’t trade a dead spy for anything.
It’s not Pollards job to decide what intelligence to share with our allies.
What if they were people posing as Israelis, instead of the real thing?
What if that information got into the wrong hand?
I don’t blame the Israelis for spying, I blame Pollard for giving in and being a spy.