You don't think the supposed difference in values is the result of ignorance of how the internet works? Or what a security researcher does? Or that security researchers exist as a hobby and profession? Or that the security of the internet at large depends on people who do this? That the every-other-month theft of giant numbers of credit cards or passwords can be prevented if white hat hackers find the security hole first? I would expect most people don't know that big companies like Facebook or Google offer bounties to people who find exploits, or that bugs that threaten the entire internet are routinely found by people who donate their time in order to protect people they don't even know, and who don't know they exist.

The facts of the case: someone broke into a computer system without permission.

The inability to interpret those facts in the light of what a security researcher does isn't a result of different values, but a lack of knowledge of the context. People who don't know how computers or the internet work are open to being told whatever story the prosecution decides to spin.

Edit: I think the ignorance is actually made clear by the example in the GP. Imagine some good Samaritan is walking past a jewelry store after closing time. They notice that the front door is ajar, and upon testing they find that the alarm doesn't go off when they enter the store. So they call the owners and wait in the store until the owner can get there and make sure the store is secure.

Do you think it's likely that this person would be prosecuted? Or, if they were, that the prosecutors and judge would throw the book at them to "make an example"? People understand that scenario and are likely to treat it with leniency in a way that they don't understand the equivalent scenario in computing.

P.S., Always a pleasure to be slapped down by tptacek :)