Maybe he should have listened better to his lawyers.
I am sorry, but the fan-kids will have to take a dive. First off, it was not "sampled," it was played in its entirety in a song which he claimed was his original creation. Secondly, his own industry calls this "theft," even though this is incorrect -- most honest professions would call what happened "plagiarism." He took someone else's work and claimed it as his own. I guess that this is okay if you are under a deadline to produce an album.
And his argument about what is public domain and what is not simply does not hold water. Again, his own industry says that if you are unclear as to the status of a piece of work, you should simply steer clear, erring on the side of not stepping over the boundary of the original author's rights.
"What's up" with these guys? No, Timblahland, what's up with you? This kind of arrogance alone merits punishment.