Ravi Gets 30 Days in Webcam Spying Case
Sentence will be stayed for 10 days, while both the state and defense team plan appeals.
Dharun Ravi was sentenced to 30 days in the Middlesex County Adult Correction Center, 300 hours of community service, three years probation and a $10,000 fine by a Superior Court judge in New Brunswick on Monday.
Ravi, 20, remained emotionless during the sentencing, his hand clasped to his mouth, while Superior Court Judge Glenn Berman explained the sentencing.
The fine is to be paid to a state-sanctioned organization that assists victims of bias crimes, Berman said. Ravi must also attend counseling programs that address cyber bullying and alternative lifestyles, Berman said.
Both Ravi's attorneys and the state plan to appeal the sentence, and have 10 days to do so. Earlier this month, the prosecution made a request for a maximum prison sentence in state prison.
Berman made a point of stating that Ravi was convicted of a bias crime.
"The word 'hate' has never crossed my lips or (Prosecutor Julia McClure's)," Berman said. "This individual was not convicted of a hate crime, he was convicted of a bias crime, and there is a difference."
Ravi was found guilty in March on 23 of 35 charges contained in 15 counts, including bias intimidation, witness tampering, and invasion of privacy.
The charges stem from September 2010, when Ravi spied on former Rutgers University roommate Tyler Clementi via webcam as Clementi was in their shared dorm room being intimate with a man identified only as "M.B."
Clementi committed suicide on Sept. 22, 2010, by jumping off the George Washington Bridge, and his death gained national attention as a talking point for bullying cases involving gay and lesbian youth.
Ravi is not charged in connection with Clementi's death.
Ravi faces state prison time if he violates the terms of his probation, Berman said. However, the probation term may be altered if Ravi completes the other terms of his sentence and is a full-time college student, Berman said.
Berman said he would recommend that Ravi not be deported, but said he is not the final authority on that decision.
Editor's Note: This article appears on multiple Patch sites in Morris, Somerset and Sussex counties. Comments posted by users may not be from your town.
Bonnie Deutsch
4:15 pm on Monday, May 21, 2012
Judge Berman, your judgement for Dharun Ravi is an outrage ! 30 days in jail is less then many people who get a DUI. Three years probation and $10,000.00 to a charity certainly sends a message. Unfortunately your message leaves the door open for other incidents like this because of your sentence. A deportation would have been appropriate. Several years in jail would be appropriate,but your sentence was not at all appropriate ! Shame on you Judge Glenn Berman, SHAME ON YOU !!
Curt Carnes
5:24 pm on Monday, May 21, 2012
Shame on you Tyler Clementi for committing suicide, SHAME ON YOU !!
Andie
7:11 pm on Monday, May 21, 2012
Tragic all around. Dharun, you should apologize.
Miles
7:35 pm on Monday, May 21, 2012
Tyler did not commit suicide just because of what Dharun did. There were many other factors..including the comments that were read in a text written by Tyler about his mom's reactions to his "coming out", which occurred just a few weeks before he killed himself.
Lori
8:26 pm on Monday, May 21, 2012
No doubt it is horrible that Ravi had a webcam spying on Tyler. Very poor judgment.
On the other hand, Tyler wrote on a gay website that he was aware of it, and was asking others whether he should let it continue so that he could use it to get Ravi in trouble. He also wrote that "it doesn't seem so bad, lol" to a friend.
It is a tragedy all around. But Tyler was not bullied into committing suicide, there were deeper issues, not the least of which involved his own family, and going with a man 12 years older. Tyler's mother had a very poor reaction to his coming out, and according to him, she "basically rejected him"
Two families are ruined, both sets facing guilt whether they admit it or not.
Michele Guttenberger
4:54 pm on Tuesday, May 22, 2012
It is good that trail brought out the other side of this story. The GLBT movement wanted life imprisonment and now they have become the current finger pointing witch hunters that want to throw a lifetime sentence on what they have deemed as the judge-jury of the homophobic label to ruin a person's life forever. Sounds like became the hateful group that they have accused others of being. Although Ravi is no angel, the media frenzy this was made into as a horrific hate crime I equate to the old witch labels of the 17th C where you were hung in the town square for your supposed devil worship. This was a bullying in school issue and not a horrific hate crime the media and GLBT wanted the public to be spectators of. 30 days is a strong sentence for the right crime of bullying a fellow classmate. The shame is on us all for the public spin of this story for our modern version of a public square hanging spectacle.
Gadfly
11:52 pm on Tuesday, May 22, 2012
Michele, It's sad that you think that calling for punishment for an individual for his crimes and persecuting a group of people for their sexual orientation is the same thing.
Emily
1:00 pm on Tuesday, May 22, 2012
Ravi got a life sentence. Things are not going to be easy for him Three years probation is a long time. He will be walking on eggs because one wrong move and he's off to state prison. Lori is right, deep seeded problems involving tyler.. and yes if everyone listened to his mother they would have heard it. I would not want to walk in the Clementi's shoes because they lost a child and my heart goes out to them.
Selene
12:35 am on Wednesday, May 23, 2012
When this country stops hating all those that do not fall into the mainstream we may have a chance. What Ravi did was that of an a-hole, hater. Ravi was a bully, but hey we have a bully Governor. We have a Governor who does not support gay rights or gay marriage. Our Governor is a disgusting POS. How do you expect our youth to respond? Ravi was wrong and hateful on so many levels but he was mirroring society. How about we start setting good, tolerant, loving examples to our children? Tyler had a mental illness that lead him to suicide. Ravi is not responsible for that, Ravi is responsible for being an a-hole hater. Unfortunately not punishable by law.
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