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John O'Boyle/The Star-Ledger
Dharun Ravi is sworn in during a hearing at the Middlesex County Courthouse in New Brunswick, N.J., where he appeared to request he start his 30-day sentence.
After apologizing for using a webcam to spy on his male roommate kissing another man days before the roommate killed himself, former Rutgers University student Dharun Ravi told a New Jersey state court he would report to jail Thursday to serve his 30-day sentence.
Indian-born Ravi, 20, was found guilty of bias intimidation and invasion of privacy in a case that exploded into the headlines when Ravi's roommate, Tyler Clementi, committed suicide.
Dharun Ravi apologizes for spying on roommate, heads to jail Thursday
Clementi, 18, jumped off the George Washington Bridge on Sept. 22, 2010, after finding out that Ravi saw him kissing another man and appeared to encourage others to watch his romantic encounters through a camera on his computer.
Ravi appeared in state court Wednesday to formally announce his decision to report to jail on Thursday. NBCNewYork.com reported Ravi will likely get a 10-day credit for good behavior, and may serve only 20 days in jail.
More on Ravi from NBCNewYork.com
Prosecutors are appealing Ravi's sentence, which they believe is too lenient, but they said they are not requesting the 10-year maximum sentence he faced.
Joseph Benedict, Ravi's lawyer, said Ravi plans to do community service when he's out of jail, reported NBCNewYork.com. He was sentenced to 300 hours of community service.
Assistant prosecutor Julia McClure told the court on Wednesday that she felt statutory requirements warranted a five-year jail term. But Judge Glenn Berman stood by his 30-day sentence.
"I can't find it in me to sentence this gentleman to a state prison that houses people convicted of offenses such as murder, armed robbery and rape," Berman said. "I know he's an adult, but I think the interests of justice demand I deviate from the guidelines."
In a statement issued Tuesday through a lawyer, Ravi said he would begin serving his jail term on Thursday even though the Middlesex County Prosecutor's Office is appealing the sentence, The Star-Ledger of Newark reported.
"It's the only way I can go on with my life," he said in the statement.
Tuesday's statement was the first time Ravi apologized.
Former Rutgers student Dharun Ravi sentenced to 30-day jail term in webcam spying case
"I accept responsibility for and regret my thoughtless, insensitive, immature, stupid and childish choices that I made on September 19, 2010 and September 21, 2010," Ravi's statement read. "My behavior and actions, which at no time were motivated by hate, bigotry, prejudice or desire to hurt, humiliate or embarrass anyone, were nonetheless the wrong choices and decisions."
When Ravi was sentenced on May 21, Judge Berman chastised him for not apologizing for his actions.
"I heard this jury say 'guilty' 288 times," Berman said, referring to all the sub-parts of the charges Ravi faced repeated 12 times, once for each juror. "And I haven't heard you apologize once."
During the court proceeding, Ravi, who expressed remorse in March in an interview with the New Jersey Star-Ledger, chose not to address the judge, though he cried as his mother pleaded for mercy from the judge.
Because Ravi's sentence is under a year, it decreases chances that immigration authorities will try to have him deported to India, where he remains a citizen.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
More content from msnbc.com and NBC News:
Leave a Comment:
He's getting the shaft...no pun intended. Should've walked with time served. I think he's already gotten the message. Are you offended by my remark? Too bad... I never read the responses, so feel free to slobber at the mouth and frail away at your keyboard.
You are a really angry and unhappy person aren't you? And you are lying about not reading responses. LOL!
Not offended, because it's a tragedy for both Ravi and the boy who died. Both appeared to be young, smart people who were not thinking correctly and made mistakes that created a horrible cost.
Ravi was stupid and stupidity has consequences. And he's paying for them.
I would question whether you read anything at all with FOX on 24/7.
send back to India....the last thing we need is another goof ball on the streets we have enough....
Had he taken the Plea Bargain and not put the victims family threw the hell of a trail that even had his scum lawyers attacking the dead boy ... maybe then his apologies would have substance! Now he seems like a cat covering his ....!
Of course you don't read the responses...lol we buy that. Whatever. It seems as though criminals have more rights than victims these days anyway. The justice system sucks.
I should think he (and his accomplice) should serve more than 30 days for this. They ONLY invaded the privacy and provoked the suicide of a gay student, so I guess it is no big deal, right? How would any of you feel if they invaded YOUR privacy or your CHILDRENS?
OH !! big tough person....WANT to let US know, you aren't going to be reading the comments !!! Like HELL you won't........ What a farce you are.....!!!!!
Totally full of BS about not reading responses lol.. you give yourself away with your insistance that you don't.
That said, I think they should have tossed this douche back to Calcutta or whatever other worthless Indian city he came from, and they should package you up and send you off with 'em bigdadjoe. Douchebags of a feather should be deported together ;).
Sorry, that was an apology written by his lawyer...the kid still hasn't expressed his feelings(ie sorrow, regret) because he has been taught to suppress them...it is cultural...send him back!
@BagdadJoe1347766...... OH!!! big tough person.. want to let us know, YOU aren't going to be reading the comments!! Like HELL YOU won't ! ! ! What a farce YOU ARE !
i agree, send the cocky little @ss back to India. You can tell he's really full of himself and thinks he is better than his room mate. He should have minded his own business and worried about himself instead of shoving his arrogant ass into someone else's privacy.
time served? sorry, I'd only have been fine with that if he was deported
I adore a good pun, I do, all respect intended.............. let's deport this boy, shame on him for spying n webcasting something so personal, prob a latent>> not that there is anything wrong w/ that
There should be no exceptions for people whose parents have money --- deport him back to India. There he can devolve into another Indian caste-driven influence-peddler.
"deport this boy", laughable. he will produce more in America than half the kooks on these boards, he will contribute to this country through taxes on the job he will eventually have. How about deporting these anchor baby mothers who come here to down load their children at our expense?, how about we start with deporting illegals here instead of students here legally. This young man made a mistake, but this was not a hate or a bias crime this was just a stupid prank, and he had ZERO idea that this other kid was suicidal. When a person "jumps to his death" in such a public display that has a deeper meaning way way beyond just "him", this has to do with a dysfunctional and not accepting by family, not another student whom he barely knew.
He needs to be deported back to India. Take his family with him...he should of shown remorse from Day One...I get so tired of seeing foreigners think that Americans owe them. Bull!
bagdadjoe-1347766 said...He's getting the shaft...no pun intended. Should've walked with time served....
Well, he will have that coming first night he is with baba. Then, he will crumble like a poppadom and will appreciate being gay.
Well, I see you have finally gotten your 15 minutes of fame by making stupid statements. If your :Handle" implies that you were a member of the armed forces for this Country, you should be ashamed of yourself for embarrassing the men and women who keep us free.
Who cares what you have to say? Oh yea, nobody.
Tyler committed two sins: Suicide and Homosexuality! Ravi gets punished on the sins that someone else committed in the first place, so I am kinda of confused how that makes sense? I am probably going to get a onslaught of pro-homosexuals comments against me but, the only thing that matters is that God's word is always right. Homosexuality is one of many curses on mankind. Now, Ravi shouldn't have had spied on this person so his punishment is okay too.
@JCB-1236504: Pretty naive of you to believe this guys stories.. if you ask me he's just another smug arrogant foreigner that thinks they are entitled to come here to America and dog on Americans all the while abusing our system. In no way is this worthless punk ever going to contribute anything that America can't get from someone worthy of being an American. Your comment is spoken like an arrogant foreigner just like Ravi. Your country can have you back any time too you know, and speaking for myself I want you and everyone like you gone from here. America needs to close the borders, stop accepting more system-milking scum to come here and become educated by our system only to abuse it and act as though we are inferior.. Let the governments in your own countries take care of you, so you can abuse your countries' system instead of ours. Superior my a$$.. if your ethnicity makes you so superior, then why don't you stay in your sand pit and life your superior little life in your inferior 3rd world armpit of a country.
@Chris - so if you don't deport him are you afraid he will become one of the wall street robbers or a tea party supporter or kkk member? You shouldn't generalize about Indian caste system and Indian people any more than you do about things at home here.
The kid has made grave mistakes and he should pay for it. But don't hate him.
Maybe they could "Air" his first nite in prision on video.
Reading these comments depresses me no end. So much vile and vituperation: And the writers are probably voters. OMG!
There maybe some voices here who are shocked that any student from any part of the world would be so callous to spy on his room-mate (what's that about?) and then publish it (find me an innocent reason for doing that) and then cloak it all as immature prank and lubricate the lie with " will produce more good in the world..." (blah, blah, blah). Wow! Did anyone here break a window as a kid and was forced to pay for the window whether it was your house or a neighbor, regardless if it was an accident, a dare or a miscalculation? Didn't your parents teach you the value of consequences and standing-up? I fear not if what I am reading is at all representative of writers values.
Time served is fine. we have one less gay to worry about.
@Blake: Yeap.. and it's too bad we still have so many old-fashioned conservadouches like you that want us all to live like it's 1850. News flash: It's 2012 homie. Time to get with the program or fall off the wagon. Your choice.
This kid is scum and needs to be deported. I have little to no use for idiots like this. Anyone who thinks this was a harmless prank is sadly mistaken. He's a smug little bastard that needs a roommate in prison to use him for sexual pleasure.
for the idiots that post nonsense responses... THINK BEFORE YOU POST!
It was Americans who found him guilty and sentenced Ravi. He went through our justice system. So what is with idiotic comments about dogging our American system? Stupidity simply amaze me. You got a problem, get on the Judge's case or the prosecutor's case, because he/she obviously could not convince the judge to see it their way. Because if you could not gotten the right sentence, you could have negotiated an acceptable sentence... Obviously the prosecution was too damn proud of the guilty verdicts priort to the sentencing.
You guys are a bunch of sore loosers and whiners!!! You live by the sword, then you die by the sword.... Obvious you don't have the guts.
@thturd: The reason we say he is milking the system has nothign to do with his court experience, and everything to do with the way he treated others: lying, insisting that the reason he committed this crime was because of the fact that the people involved were inferior because they "looked funny" etc.., refusing to apologize until forced.
I know, that's deep stuff that requires actually reading the article, paying attention to the story as a whole and it involves a little thought so I'll have to cut you some slack for not being able to handle it all.
Econ-1504217 "the only thing that matters is that God's word is always right."
Which version of "God's word" should we take as being the right one? There are literally THOUSANDS of versions of his/her/its word.
Jewish? (Orthodox perhaps?) Muslim? Christian?
If it's Christianity, which version is the right one? RC, Methodist, Baptist (Is God Southern Reformed?), Presbyterian, Lutheran.
You can't leave us hanging like this! We need to know!
Come on guys, get serious! This Indian Jerk was a student at Rutgers for god's sake, and one does not get in there by being dumb. Ravi new exactly what he was doing and is all contrite to avoud prison cause he would learn first hand how a twink gets educated in prison. Aso his mother, through cries and tears, said why were they punishing the "normal" one. That speaks volumes as to their attitude. No matter how you feel about homosexuals, this 18 year old talented boy/man did not deserve this treatment. As far as I am concerned the feds should terminate the guest status of this entire family and let them spread their hate in India rather that stay here in a non-citizen status, piling up the money and sending it back to India so they can retire wealthy. Where they would have to pay for Ravi's education out of their own pocket and not have a partial subsidy by tax payers. I just wonder why this society panders to these oportunistic foreigners at the expense of our own sons and daughters. Ask Ravi if he intends to volunteer for the military.
Lol.. I think the military should draft this punk and put him right on the front lines.
Electrofreaks post "@JCB-1236504: Pretty naive of you to believe this guys stories.. if you ask me he's just another smug arrogant foreigner that thinks they are entitled to come here to America and dog on Americans all the while abusing our system. In no way is this worthless punk ever going to contribute anything that America can't get from someone worthy of being an American. Your comment is spoken like an arrogant foreigner just like Ravi. Your country can have you back any time too you know, and speaking for myself I want you and everyone like you gone from here. America needs to close the borders, stop accepting more system-milking scum to come here and become educated by our system only to abuse it and act as though we are inferior.. Let the governments in your own countries take care of you, so you can abuse your countries' system instead of ours. Superior my a$$.. if your ethnicity makes you so superior, then why don't you stay in your sand pit and life your superior little life in your inferior 3rd world armpit of a country"
Sorry Electrofreak, we don't have a draft. Sorry to disappoint you kook, but my family goes back to 1821 in this country, from Denmark and Germany, settled in Virginia then Florida. Unlike your uneducated self, I have traveled this entire world. Unlike uneducated kooks like you, we need people like this young man because flat out Americans are not up to par when it comes to filling 2012's jobs, that's why you see Indians and Asians in every major hospital in this country, we NEED these people because "we" are to stupid to do the jobs that need doing. You sir can make the fries. "Ravi" I saw on 20/20 in an interview, pretty impressive, because he turned "down" a plea deal that would have given him zero jail time, but he would not say "I did this out of bias", because he says he didn't do it out of bias, sounds like he's got guts to me. Walking away from a get out of jail free card based on his principals, is something that I admire. The only thing I'm sure of is "American arrogance" hence the term "ugly American" in many countries. You think America is the best, only because you haven't seen other countries, other continents, your just another arrogant American based on your own ignorance. You want to close the borders? then elect someone who will, until then your just another blowhard behind a keyboard with a rage problem.
Homophobia, meet xenophobia!
Dharun Ravi is a heartless little weasel, but that is an international rainbow coalition whose membership includes folk from many lands, including the good old U. S. A. with its hilarious intolerance of "foreigners." It's amazing how many Americans overlook the fact that this is a nation of immigrants.
Could we also perhaps remember that unless you are a Native American, you, too, are of foreign extraction?
Keith Babcock's quote "I just wonder why this society panders to these oportunistic foreigners at the expense of our own sons and daughters."
Because Americans are not prepared to do any of these jobs Keith, just that simple. Get in your car and drive to the Cleveland Clinic and sit down with an Indian Doctor and an Asian nurse and ask them that exact question. The answer will be "you Americans are to lazy, to entitled to learn the skills necessary to fill these jobs". How about that for a correct answer?, because correct it is. Go to ANY major hospital in this country and you will see great jobs available and no Americans with the skill set to perform them. It's just that simple. Now get off your high horse concerning immigration of the best and the brightest, because brother we are not growing them here, we are not prepared for these jobs. And saying otherwise does not make it so.
Keith they have spell check for a reason.
thank you Melissa for a reasoned response, but if you saw that interview on 20/20, the "little weasel" as you put it, looked like he has a pair. He didn't cave to save his own butt, and that's called guts.
JCB is on the money.
Although I do know a couple of American doctors who aren't lazy, were not born into entitlement, and did learn the skills necessary to do the job.
wonder if his cellmate/future boyfriend will video their escapades...?
Please spare us your homosexual fantasies.
oh, a critic - wonder if you comprehend the statement and your own lack of thought in your response....
There is a difference between jail and prison. What you are wishing for happens in prisons.
I never understood people that went straight to homosexual activity when thinking about incarceration.
I think about a wasted life. I think about selfish people. I think about a life lost. I think about the wasted tax dollars for a slap on the wrist.
The last thing I think about is whether or not someone will become butt sore during their stay.
Dharun Ravi looks Gay.
At least he will be losing privacy for a few days. Hope he hates it. :)
I know, I know.... not a big deal because it was a gay kid. That attitude is asking for it to be your straight daughter or grand daughter one day. Expect no sympathy! And remember, once it's on the internet, it will ALWAYS be on the internet.
At least he HAS a life to go on with.
He could have pled guilty and not served any time at all. Now he spends time in jail, does community service AND pays 10k to a program for abuse victims.
What goes around...comes around.
You left out the tons of money he paid to the scum lawyers & private eyes ...
The fool and his parents got taken for a ride ... and then the scum lawyers had the nerve to grin ear to ear when he didn't get serious jail time after their colossal failure ................
Which scum layers are you talking about ?
The scum lawyer who prosecuted ? OR the scum lawyer who defended (after all, only people YOU deem worthy are entitled to a defense, right ?)
That scum lawyer, whose client was facing 30 years, got 30 DAYS - yes, he did his job and he was PROUD of it. If it were YOUR kid, YOU'D be grinning ear to ear too.
Well, yes, he does have a life to go on with...that's p-r-o-b-a-b-l-y because he didnt CHOOSE to jump off a bridge.
If he and his parents didn't think that he did nothing wrong (or that they could cover things up)...they wouldn't have had to pay so much for lawyers.
How much did the entire trial cost the taxpayers? How much will the 20 or so days in jail cost? How much will his probation cost?
What probation? He was sentenced to 30 days in jail, of which he will maybe serve 20 days, and 300 hours of commuity service. I saw nothing in the story to indicte that he was to go on probation.
what a horrible person ravi is I would like to talk to the parents of this insensitive waste of life. shame on them for raising such a bad member of society, whether here in the states or india
Traffic tickets: get 300 hours community service The judge is bias. Put Ravi in medium correction, he would have been safe.
comes around... bada bada boom... seriously, DEPORT HIM HE LOOK N ACTS LIKE A RAT, ewwwwwwwwwwww
So, you want to have the opportunity to bully them because it is your opinion that their son is a bully?
Ain't double think a fine thing.
why do you think parets have anything to do with this sick person he is old enough to be resp for his own actions he is a real sick guy to make a movie and plaay with other ppls life
@Jeff-573598: No so about me being glad if Ravi were my kid. I beleve that my kids will learn every hard lesson life throws at them. The hard way. Without cushioning from me. All that cusioning accomplishes is the enabling of further bad behavior. Real prison time would do this little twerp good. And by the conduct of the judge, they didn't need a lawyer anyway. It's obvious the judge wants to coddle this kid.
Ravi should be deported along with his family and the liberal judge thrown off the bench !
^ Wouldn't a liberal judge want to throw the book at this kid, Ravi, being that he helped cause the suicide of a homosexual college student? Goes to show you that the term liberal judge or activist judge is a matter of perspective.
@Susie Cue
http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2012/05/dharun_ravis_sentence_a_surpri.html
Thankfully, most of the time the mistakes we make when we're young are benign.
And then, there are those times when terrible choices have terrible consequences.
Ravi didn't kill Clementi. But he did set in motion a terrible sequence of events that convinced another young man that dying was preferable to living.
Our own general intolerance of homosexuality can be blamed for this, but I'm not one to blame "society" when justice demands a price from specific people.
I think Ravi got off too easily. I understand he was young--and still is--but his actions were monstrous, and they were committed without any regard for how it would affect another person.
And so I agree with the prosecutor. Ten years? Too much. Thirty days? Far too little.
wonder if the same would have been said if it was an 18 yo white upper-middle class girl?
then of course, it would have been hemp and the nearest tree
Thank you for your thoughtful response. I agree.
if we continue to teach tolerance versus intolerance instead of good versus evil we end up tolerating evil...homosexuality is evil and those who support it are marketers of evil
His sentence may be light, but Bubba is going to give him the blues like he could never, ever imagine...the terror that he inflicted on this kid is going to be returned a hundred fold.......justice...
Just how do you know its evil....My guess is that maybe you have climbed to the other side of the fence and you maybe feel evil because you had to run back before your lovely wife or girlfriend caught you....sad to say but people such as you that need to quote the bible in order to make yourselves feel free of sinning and then you go on to spread HATE around the world and then head to Church on Sunday just so you can feel better about yourself only to begin the hate after you leave church....Very sad that people such as yourself are more concerned with who others sleep with instead of trying to help you fellow HUMAN BEINGS out that really need your help.try spending some time doing good things for the world and community for which you live in and leave the judgments to GOD or whomever else is the higher power,because MY GOD LOVE ALL....
@Art-2065319....YES ! ! !
USMCVET68,
I respectfully disagree.
Clementi didn't kill himself over any inner shame of being homosexual. If that were the case, I believe he would have made this tragic decision far before Ravi came into the picture.
I submit he killed himself over how society--and his peers--would treat him once he'd been "outed".
Most experts agree that homosexuality is as much of a "choice" as heterosexuality...which is to say it's not a choice at all. I don't understand it, but I've come to respect it as just one facet of human biology.
And if we're going to brand this sexual orientation as an evil that can't be rehabilitated, then we need to say "good riddance" to this boy and hail Ravi as a hero.
I can't believe any God in heaven would side with that logic.
I sure as hell don't.
The worst part of all this is that he simply should have gone to the Rutgers housing administration and requested a new roommate.
He did go to them and request a new roommate, they did nothing
Correct, Mam - because, to request a new roommate because of being gay, would be discrimination, so he'd have just been told to grin and "bare" it.
Now Ravi can participate instead of watch.
Nay, Nare.
He wont be put in general population...much as you would like. Perhaps it's YOU, who would like to participate ? (Careful, if anyone finds out about you, you may jump off a bridge)
Thats right Jeff. Then you will be in court defending your actions.
Nice sentiment, but he won't meet Bubba in 20 days at a medium security facility. No one will get a chance to even touch him. Too bad, he deserves it! Now, if only he and his parents would buy one way tickets to Mumbai, the story would have a happy ending.............
NOW he says he's sorry? Only when he has to spend time in jail. He can get on with HIS life while the other young man Tyler Clementi cannot. I feel for Tyler's family. I also feel that Ravi is a predator.
I sort of agree with you, Texas grace , but wonder how you mean that Dharun Ravi is a "predator." I don't disagree; I just don't understand.
I disagree, I feel Clementi had more issues than someone camming his affairs. What Ravi did was most definitely in appropriate, but did he cause Clementi to kill himself? I seriously doubt it.
Ravi isn't a predator; he is psychologically immature. That still doesn't make him responsible for Clementi deciding to off himself. Clementi had more problems than a breech of his privacy, which one cannot assume as a right when you share a room, by Ravi.
Ravi will live with his choices and Clementi CHOSE to die by his.
His "apology" comes way too little, way too late. Because of his vindictiveness, a young man with a promising future is dead. He got off lightly - TOO lightly.
His apology was issued when his lawyer said it was appropriate to issue it.
If your lawyer had advised you in a similar way, you would have followed his advice in the same way Ravi did. 20 year olds don't go against the advice of an attorney that Daddy is paying for, especially when it could turn into extra jail time.
I'll respectfully agree to disagree with you, Harold of the Rocks. Yes, he followed his attorney's advice and he did what the attorney said he should do, but that doesn't mitigate the fact that he didn't apologize until after the trial and after the sentencing. Had he been more of a decent, caring human being, he would have apologized a whole lot earlier than he did.
In my opinion, of course.
I hope he isn't found hanging in his cell. He doesn't look like he can do jail time.
He'll be just fine. Owing to all the publicity surrounding his case, Mr. Ravi will probably be in a "protected" incarceration situation. Plus his parents will probably pad his "canteen" account so he won't have to survive on jailhouse rations. His mother is concerned about his weight loss, you know.
All of this because his fragile roommate brings some creepy stranger around and he wants to know what's going on when he's locked out of his own room. A 30 MINUTE sentence would have boon too long after the way the media blew this out of proportion and crucified this guy.
Yeah, but the second time recording was a bit too much thus the more serious charge.
Spying on your roommate is wrong no matter what you think if his guests. Under the circumstances it may not bad enough for jail time, but maybe others will get the message.
I believe that previous articles about this crime stated that Clementi asked to have the room to himself for a period of time; Ravi was not locked out of his room. That is usually how roommates have some personal time in their shared room. Regardless Ravi did not have the right to set up a camera to spy on Clementi and then invite his friends to spy right along with him. Everyone is entitled to their privacy regardless of sexual preference.
If Clementi had been with a woman, and Ravi secretly taped that encounter, would it have drove Clementi to jump off that bridge? Probably not. Even though Ravi's actions were motivated by his intolerance of gays, his actions alone did not lead to Clementi's death. Clearly, Clementi was disturbed..and the cause of his disturbance was brought on by society as a whole.
which is why the suicide had nothing to do with this trial.
since you're spouting hypotheticals; it would have been great if it was your daughter being taped and then posted to YouTube - oh, but then maybe she would have been the one to jump
wonder how you feel about the situation now?!
PatseChi: Ravi didn't post anything to youtube
hence the phrase 'hypothetical'
So if you rob somebody and they don't commit suicide, then you've committed no crime?
He's going to jail for invasion of privacy and destruction of evidence, not causing a suicide.
Although Ravi did not push Tyler off the GW Bridge, I am sure his invasion of Tyler's privacy didn't help Tyler's state of mind. It was merely one more straw added onto the camel's back. Which was the one that finally broke it?
Perhaps Tyler phoned home about his roommate's spying on him, and Tyler may not have gotten the most positive feedback from his family. Remember, he only just "came out" a few days before leaving for Rutgers to attend school there as a freshman, and he did not have the best support system at home. The wounds from his outing with his family were still fresh enough that if they weren't supportive of him when he told them about the spying, this could have done it.
Ravi's violation was wrong, but not enough to merit a long period of time in jail.
He did some illegal things, but I doubt that he knew they were illegal at any time during what he did. Thousands of people are videotaped yearly without the proper permission being obtained. Even when brought to police attention, such cases are rarely prosecuted. This was prosecuted mainly because the guy who was videotaped committed suicide shortly afterwards. It is doubtful there was a connection but I understand how the whole thing got the attention of the police. It would have been better to give him all probation but I hope that a 30 day sentence will be sufficient to satisfy the blood lust of those who want Ravi's head. Overall the judge made a wise decision and Ravi is making the right decision in starting his sentence right now. That may reduce the chance that a higher court will lengthen it. There is really no good purpose served in putting this kid in jail and the shorter the sentence the better I feel about it.
but I doubt that he knew they were illegal at any time during what he did
Ignorance of the law is not an excuse.
"My behavior and actions, which at no time were motivated by hate, bigotry, prejudice or desire to hurt, humiliate or embarrass anyone, were nonetheless the wrong choices and decisions."
Then what the hell was he motivated by? Love? Please.
I think he was motivated by immaturity and stupidity.
Looks like he read what his lawyer drafted and counseled him to do.
He was curious...he wanted to know if he could get a rise out of two men doing it! Maybe learn a few tricks for later when he was not being videotaped with his boyfriend...I'm just saying
pls send this @!$%# back to india!
Xenophobic much?
some people are just racists and can't help it.
Wow Janet, coming from a Hispanic Jew...
This is the worst homo-fascist ruling ever. Fragile little Tyler killed HIMSELF you dolts. Had Tyler been bullied for a period of time and literally been driven to the act then you would have my support. But a roommate spies on you and spills your not-so-carefully guarded secret? Give me a break. Tyler was OBVIOUSLY a very troubled young man with deeply rooted and plentiful psychological problems which led him to take his OWN life. How is anyone responsible except for Tyler? Ravi got convicted of going against the politically-correct leftist homo-fascist regime we obviously have in place.
So, if someone video taped your private moments without your knowledge and then showed the tape to all of his/her friends...you would have no problem with this whatsoever?
Jane - he didn't say he had no problem with it.
I'm sure he'd be embarrassed and outraged, as would we all; I think he's saying (and I agree) that, in your scenario, he wouldn't jump off a bridge.
Well, I wouldn't jump off a bridge either but I would want to press charges against the person who violated my privacy.
I would show discretion and not engage in actions in a SHARED space that I would not engage in a public space. Especially with a camera pointing at me.
Being video taped "without your knowledge" means that you have no idea a camera is there. Just thought I would point that out since you seemed to miss that.
As for students not making out in their dorm rooms....LOL. You must not have gone to college.
@William..this isn't a leftist issue, this is a privacy issue. This is about a young man's privacy being invaded by someone who had nothing better to do with his time. Just because you don't approve of Tyler's choices doesn't mean you can't see the injustice of what Ravi did. Tyler wasn't fragile in the way you think...he was Embarrassed & Humiliated not just for his self but for his parents whom he knew would find out about the video. Tyler made a couple of bad choices but being his self wasn't one of them. Ravi made a couple of bad choices and just like Tyler should pay a price...one may pay with his soul but the other should pay with more time than 30 days for invading the other's privacy. RESPECT of others is taught...but for some... Lack of Respect is also taught. What are you teaching your children/grand-children?
Jane,
Thats just foolish. Being taped is implied these days. What happens when there is a crime? The police start going through video because the cameras are everywhere. A college aged person was unaware that web cams are actually cameras?
As for students making out in their dorms:
there are always easy girls (looking at you) to get a cheap thrill from.
if your determined to be sexually active in a shared living space, then be smart enough to cover the cameras.
Whynoteasy,
Trial is over. He got 30 days. I think thats 30 days more than he deserves. You seem to want to punish him more. Would you be happy with max sentencing? If so, then I want to know why you aren't expanding on that line. Shouldn't every single suicide be investigated and any person who had any negative influence on the suiciders life be held responsible? Why is only Ravi being tried here?
Shouldn't they be held responsible also? He wouldn't have done it if it were not for his fear of their reaction.
If you say, "There would not have been anything to react to without Ravis actions." I would reply that there would not have been those actions without the suiciders actions. Which he himself obviously felt were wrong. If you are considering doing something that you yourself consider wrong then don't do it.
WOW reading some of these comments makes you realize just how far our society has fallen. A distraught kid killed himself because of this scumbag Rovi. Rovi filmed this to bully, embarrass and humiliate his victim. This is the exact behavior we are trying to teach our kids NOT to do. A sentence of 30 days is an insult to the family of this kid and insult to the decent people in this country. The fact Rovi showed no remorse before or during the trial should have gotten him at least 6 months. Rovi wants to get on with his life? What about Rovi's victims life? If Rovi was truly sorry he would have accepted responsibility for his actions right from the start instead of trying to slime his way out of it. The only reason he is going to jail now is to try and prevent the prosecution from winning an appeal and him getting the sentence he deserved. I believe his "remorse" is fake and only given after the public outrage. This piece of crap needs to serve his sentence and be deported back to India. He doesn't deserve the PRIVILEGE of living in this country. Hopefully he will get some jailhouse justice but I doubt it as he probably won't be in the general population because his family has money and he is coward. He picked on pushed around a weaker kid and now he'll want to be protected. What a disgrace that judge is. I wonder how much money he got paid for that sentence. If this had been a white kid or a or black kid that committed this crime they would be going to jail for a lot longer for 30 days. Just another example of our broken corrupt judicial system. Sentencing needs to be taken away from these judges. It should be up to the jury to decide.
Such feigned outrage! Methinks you protest too much. Why don't you admit that the outrage is rooted in the fact that Ravi rejected a homosexual and nothing more? You might feel better, angry little one.
The problem is, bullying is wrong, no matter how it's done! The outrage is that people like you William, have no compassion for anyone! Being homosexual does not make you less of a person! Being homosexual does not mean others have the right to defame or threaten you. What Ravi did was wrong! He did it knowing that it would hurt another person! Gay or straight, it does not matter. When you deliberately attack someone, whether by words or deeds, you are guilty of assault! You need to learn compassion and maybe a little more about respect and dignity and then you might be taken seriously. Protest too much? I think not. This kind of ignorant bullying needs to stop, period. He deserved much more than the jail time he is serving. He, like you and people like you, need to grow up and learn that live and let live is the only way to be.
If you believe that the actions of Ravi were the direct cause of the kid throwing himself off a bridge, and if that were true, then the kid was destined to kill himself off anyway. If there are people that are going to be throwing themselves off bridges for things like this then there are people who will read your post and start heading for the nearest bridge. Perhaps bullying on a minor level actually benefits in that it protects us in later years when the bullying gets meaner.
Reread your post. You're not the law. You're bullying Ravi, who has already faced the law.
Oh, and Mother Theresa, when the world turns perfect with no bullying, that will mean the human race is extinct. Learning to deal with bullies is a part of becoming an adult.
I disagree with William that the outrage is rooted in the fact that Ravi rejected a homosexual. The outrage is rooted in the fact that a kid is dead, and people want someone to pay for it. Unfortunately, it was a suicide, and there really is no "crime" to pay for. In our effort to seek justice and have closure, the the outrage shifts to Ravi's petty crime - with some even convinced that it caused the suicide.
You can't blame others for a suicide. If you do, every person who comes home to find their spouse has left them will have even more motivation to kill themselves.
I agree with William that both Fedup and Theresa seem to have "misplaced" outrage. Methinks thou doth protest too much. Or, to be technically correct.... "The lady doth protest too much, methinks."
Ten years is way too much but 30 days is an insult. People serve more time for shoplifting a $10 DVD from Walmart!
I think he was just trying to fit into the groups and acted stupidly as most college kids do. a video tape to increase his own popularity- backfired big time. How many times have kids tried to do stupid things to be accepted/ to become poular? Colleges should not have dorms- go back home to parents and save the money for their parents instead. So they don't fall to peer pressure, drugs etc either. Kids are not mature enough -even if we think so.
My sympathies for clementi.
After Ravi gets out of prison, he plans on becoming manager of the local Quickie Mart.
Finally, an apology! It has bothered me so much that he would not apologize. It makes me wonder what kind of family he grew up in?
Probably the kind that told him to do EXACTLY as his lawyer says. You know, a SMART family. If the family told Ravi to keep quiet and do exactly what the lawyer says, then I would call that a GOOD family, filled with SMART people, who only had Ravi's best interest in mind.
This case, and the 30 day sentence handed out, was a tragedy.
Because of Ravi's actions, a boy lies dead. True he didn't pull the trigger, nor did he didn't tell him to jump. But did he know what would happen? A jury thought so, deliberated and returned a verdict of guilty. The 'rogue' judge should have passed a sentence that was within guidelines of the verdict. In any case the prosecution has already promised to appeal the lax 30 day sentence.
If anything, such a lenient sentence proves that current hate crime laws are not strong enough. The gay and minority community should be using all their resources to expand the scope of and strengthen these laws to include situations of this sort.
No. Because of THAT boy's OWN actions, he is dead.
He was not pushed off the bridge.
The result was, in no way, foreseeable by Ravi. Perhaps an intent to embarrass, nothing more.
It's a tragedy and we're looking for someone to blame. LOOK at the boy himself. Being "outed" is not something to kill yourself over, and, if it's such a secret, hint - dont do it in your NON private dorm room.
According to his statement, he wasn't motivated out of trying to embarrass or humiliate anyone. That's the part of the "apology" that gets me. If he wasn't motivated by that, what the heck motivated him to do this in the first place?
The apology just seems too little, too late, and it seemed really hollow.
Yes, Ravi didn't push him off the bridge, but he's a bully nonetheless, and his actions were a factor in the suicide. No bully ever "forsees" pushing his victim to suicide, but that doesn't give them an excuse to humiliate and harass someone to that point. His actions were abhorrent, and you can't blame Clementi for having assumed what happened in his dorm room when Ravi wasn't there was private. That is why Ravi was convicted on the invasion of privacy.
I understand that Ravi didn't push Clementi, Clementi made that choice. But Ravi is hardly an innocent victim in this.
You are right Jeff-573598, it was Clementi's actions he is dead.
It is a tragedy, as it's a tragedy when any young person commits suicide.
But, I have to tell you...if the little @sshole Ravi had taped my hetrosexual Daughter having sex in a dorm room with a lockable door and broadcast it, I would have made sure he got dragged through every court I could think of. And God forbid, if she were to kill herself over it.
You stated that being outed is nothing to kill yourself over...but you weren't there...you didn't know him. I had a beautiful nephew who committed suicide when he was 17, of course we were all devistated and the reasons he did it were so minor in the grand scheme of life...
It doesn't matter if Clementi was gay or not...
The bottom line here is...this Ravi could do 3 weeks or 30 years and it will never bring Clementi back to his family. The only thing we can ultimately hope for is that the morons of the world who think this is some funny prank will decide maybe it isn't so funny after all.
Heidi:
My condolences for the loss of your nephew.
THAT having been said, no, I wasnt here - but I find it VERY hard to believe that there would be a scenario where I would find suicide for being outed as a viable action.
And, yes, the "bottom line" as you say, is that there is a dead boy - BUT...that dead boy IS dead because of HIS actions. Ravi did something awful, sure...but no WAY could he have anticipated the outcome. The response was WAY disproportionate to his actions... The sentence was fair.
I'm fine with the 30 days (well, not really - 11 months and 29 days would have been fine by me), but I say let's get on with the 30 days, COLLECT THE $10K fine, find something actually useful to apply the 300 hours of community service to and then DEPORT the idiot back to his home country.
Somehow when they wrote "The wretched refuse of your teeming shore." at the base of the Statue of Liberty, they were not talking about wretched, insensitive and perverse refuse.
YES, what a jag-off to say the least. He's here as a guest on a student visa and he's wanting to judge and taunt American citizens? He was not just taping to verify the activity and confront his roomate -- he was showing the video to other students on that campus. Are US corporations that desperate for cheap H1 Visa labor that he just MUST stay here?? And the judge called this jag a "gentleman" - so I guess that answers my question.
...and to think there are still people out there that think criminals cannot be rehabilitated.
Ravi got too much time, Clementi was a disturbed young man. Maybe they should put the parents in jail for tossing their child aside instead of being there supporting and showing him unconditional love. I have a gay daughter and not a day goes by that I don't tell her I love her. I blame most of Clementi's death on the family.
When and if your daughter ever decides she has had enough and kills herself,we can all blame it on you....That was the most stupid comment ever especially from a parent of a gay child.......try thinking before you post comments that in the long run might affect you one day....
I stand behind what I said, I support my daughter. She knows she can talk to me and my wife about anything at any given time. We accept her for who she is, no matter if bigots out there want to shun or harass her she always has her family.
I'm a big time supporter for gay rights it takes a big man to support their child no matter what their orientation is.
I can't find it in me to sentence this gentleman to a state prison that houses people convicted of offenses such as murder, armed robbery and rape," Berman said. Here is a question Berman..... What if this was your child!!!! Ravi looked like he was an intelligent young man.... I guess he was not. He was nothing but a rich BULLY. Sadly if Ravi would have used his smartness in the right manner.... he probably would have been a successful person just as the musician would have been making many people smile with his music.
If your daughter is gay then is she a disturbed individual as well ? Or would have no problem with someone taping her getting it on hot and heavy with another chick and putting it on line for the whole school to see...