In a Feb. 24, 2012 file photo former Rutgers University student, Dharun Ravi, arrives at his trial in New Brunswick, N.J. (AP Photo/Mel Evans/file)
Former Rutgers student Dharun Ravi was sentenced to 30 days in jail for using a webcam to watch an intimate encounter between his roommate Tyler Clementi and another man just days before Clementi committed suicide.
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Ravi, 2o, was sentenced to three years probation, ordered to get counseling and must pay $10,000 to a program that helps victims of bias crimes, in addition to his jail time.
He was convicted of all 15 criminal charges that he faced, including four counts of hate crime of bias intimidation, invasion of privacy and seven counts of tampering with evidence.
The judge who sentenced Ravi on Monday also said that he would not recommend the Indian citizen be deported.
Prosecutors had offered Ravi a plea deal that called for no prison time but would have forced him to admit guilt, so he turned it down.
Ravi turned on his webcam remotely after Clementi asked him for privacy while he had a male guest over in September 2010. He then told other students about the video through instant messages and tweets.
Molly Wei, a friend of Ravi’s who showed seconds of the live-streamed videos to other students, entered a pre-trail invention program that can spare her jail or a criminal record if she meets a list of conditions.
Two days later Clementi told his roommate he needed privacy again. This time Ravi posted to friends via Twitter ways that they could access his webcam.
The next day Clementi jumped off the George Washington Bridge. Prosecutors said that he checked his roommate’s Twitter feed repeatedly right before he killed himself.
The incident gained nationwide attention, shining a spotlight on bullying and the harassment some young homosexuals endure.
With Associated Press
