Former Rutgers student Dharun Ravi was sentenced to just 30 days in jail plus three years probation for spying on his gay roommate Tyler Clementi, who then committed suicide. Click below to find out more.
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Ravi, 20, was clearly relieved as the judge handed down the unexpectedly light sentence, which also included 300 hours of community service and a $10,000 fine.
Ravi could have faced up to 10 years in prison for invasion of privacy and bias intimidation for using a webcam to watch Clementi’s tryst with an older man.
Shocked prosecutors said they planned to appeal the sentence since it contains no state prison time.
Middlesex, N.J., Superior Court Judge Glenn Berman chided Ravi for his apparent lack of remorse but said he would recommend deportation to the defendant’s native India.
“I haven’t heard you apologize once,†Berman said.
“You cannot expunge the conduct or the pain you caused,†he added, telling Ravi he acted not out of hate but “a colossal insensitivity.â€
Ravi did not address the court, but he broke down as his mother sobbed while she pleaded with the judge for mercy and said her son had been unfairly demonized.
“He has lost more than 25 pounds going through this ordeal,†Sabitha Ravi said through tears.
“Dharun’s dreams are shattered and he has been living in hell for the past 20 months
…
As a mother I really feel that Dharun has suffered enough.â€
Clementi’s mother, Jane, also wept as she recalled the torment her son must have felt and his decision to throw himself off the George Washington Bridge on Sept. 22, 2010.
“The devastation of the loss of my son was more than I could bear
…
I felt like a piece of me died,†she said.
