A conviction was handed down on Friday in the case of webcam spying involving a former student from Rutgers University. The student, Dharun Ravi, was convicted of invasion of privacy and anti-gay intimidation. The victim in the case, Tyler Clementi, was videotaped kissing another man by a webcam setup by Ravi, Clementi’s roommate. Clementi killed himself by throwing himself off a bridge.
Ravi could be facing close to 10 years in prison, according to some officials, and also could be deported to his native country India despite having lived in the country legally since he was a young boy. The webcam was setup in the room in September of 2010. When Ravi saw what he captured on film he tweeted about it and tried to catch Clementi in the act again. Almost half a dozen students saw the kiss happen live.
Days later, Clementi realized what happened and posted one final time to Facebook, “Jumping off the gw bridge, sorry.” He jumped from the George Washington Bridge to his death. Clementi’s father, Joe, said the following after the verdict was issued today:
“You’re going to meet a lot of people in your life. Some of these people you may not like. Just because you don’t like them doesn’t mean you have to work against them.”
A statement from Rutgers was released that said: “This sad incident should make us all pause to recognize the importance of civility and mutual respect in the way we live, work and communicate with others.”
During the trial, prosecutors were not permitted to argue that the webcam spying caused Clementi’s death and defense lawyers were not permitted to argue that Clementi killed himself for other reasons.
“The verdict today demonstrates that the jurors understood that bias crimes do not require physical weapons like a knife in one’s hand,” said Hayley Gorenberg, deputy legal director of the gay rights organization Lambda Legal, according to ABC News.
Over a span of 12 days, there was testimony from close to 30 witnesses. One of the witnesses, identified only as M.B., was the 32-year-old romantic friend of Clementi. Ravi did not take the stand but the jury watched a video of his interrogation by the police investigating the case. Ravi and Clementi were both freshman at the time of the incident, who had been randomly assigned a dorm room together. When Clementi arrived at school it was only days after he came out to his parents as a gay man.
Ravi was asked to leave the room on September 19 so Clementi could have a guest come over. That night, Ravi posted the following on Twitter:
“Roommate asked for the room till midnight. I went into molly’s room and turned on my webcam. I saw him making out with a dude. Yay.”
Only two nights later, Clementi requested Ravi to leave the room again. Ravi then tweeted the following:
“I dare you to video chat me between the hours of 9:30 and 12. Yes, it’s happening again.”
Clementi committed suicide on September 22, 2010.
Dr. Rosenberg Speaks Out #2.wmv
Dr. Bernhard Rosenberg addresses the Rutgers University spycam case and bullying on college campuses. Dr. Rosenberg also addresses his likely being let go from Rutgers University because he was too good of a teacher for rutgers to handle. SEE YOU TUBE
This is an absurd prosecution, a gross over-reaching by the police state, and an inexcusable waste of public resources. Get a grip, folks. The defendant communicated to others that his roommate was gay. With or without the video, that is the essence of the offense. The roommate was so terrified of being outed (to a hostile and sometimes unforgiving world) that he killed himself. But the roommate did not cause the death.
Disclosing that another person is gay, or is having an affair, or has a fat ass or a small d*ck is not the type of conduct that we can reasonably say was intended to cause great bodily injury or death. We can’t even say those actions forseeably would bring about great bodily injury or death. They will certainly make someone else embarrassed. Perhaps humiliated. Like what happens on reality TV every single day. Like what happens in most workplaces, in the tabloids. Even the government is looking at our private parts before we board an airplane, and we know the workers are making cruel jokes about our bodies. This type of conduct is offensive, but it is not criminal.
If I said Mitt Romney has sex in magic underwear, through a sheet (maybe it’s true, maybe not) it would presumably be embarrassing to him to have someone publicly speculating about his sex life. But it’s not criminal to do so. And it should not be criminal. Even if I got a picture of him in the act, showing the picture is not criminal. If I burglarized the place to acquire it, that would be. But the young man who was gay shared a room, and unfortunately his roommate has free use of the entire room, which includes taking pictures. He could have hidden in the closet and taken photos, so what is the difference if he planted a video camera? None at all.
Granted, the young man’s privacy was invaded. He, or his survivors, could sue in civil court for a private wrong. What is the damage? You need to be able to quantify a damage claim in civil court with some certainty. He is embarrassed to have people learn he is gay? Okay. That’s not really compensable. Wanting to stay in the closet may be understandable, but if someone else opens the door, and what they say is truthful, it’s not compensable damage. Embarrassment? How much is that worth? I have a hard time saying that disclosing that someone is gay should be compensable on any level, since it suggests that being gay is a bad thing, or is disgraceful.
I hope his attorneys appeal, and I hope the case gets thrown out. I feel very sorry for this young man who committed suicide and for his family. But the solution is not hypocritical criminal cases brought against teenagers for being stupid and crude, building more prisons for college kids. The solution is to change society so that young people no longer see suicide as a better alternative than having the public know their sexual preference.