After 12 hours of deliberation over more than two days, a jury found Dharun Ravi guilty on counts including bias as a hate crime, invasion of privacy, destroying evidence, hindering apprehension or prosecution, and witness tampering, but not guilty of several other bias intimidation charges in a New Jersey court today. Ravi was charged with 15 counts in all for spying with a web cam on his Rutgers roommate Tyler Clementi, who later committed suicide.
Prosecutors said Ravi targeted Clementi because he was gay, while the defense portrayed him as an immature 18-year-old. Although Ravi was not charged directly in Clementi’s death, the case became a discussion point in the conversation about the bullying of gay teens, while Ravi’s villainization and the unfounded rumors swirling around the case were explored in this exhaustive New Yorker article.
Ravi, whose sentencing is scheduled for May 21, faces up to ten years in prison and could be deported to his native India.
This post has been updated throughout.
