Parents of gay suicide student will sue university
The parents of a New Jersey student who jumped to his death after his roommate allegedly broadcast his gay sex session are to sue his university.
Tyler Clementi, an 18-year-old student at Rutgers University, killed himself by jumping from the George Washington Bridge in September.
His roommate Dharun Ravi of Plainsboro, New Jersey, and Molly W Wei of Princeton, both 18, deny secretly recording him having sex with a man and broadcasting it online.
Using Ms Wei’s computer, Mr Ravi allegedly remotely switched on his webcam to see Mr Clementi having sex with a man. He is said to have streamed the images.
When Mr Clementi asked for privacy again several days later, Mr Ravi allegedly returned to Ms Wei’s room and made another attempt to broadcast the encounter.
They have both been charged with invasion of privacy and have left campus.
Associated Press reports that Mr Clementi’s parents filed notice to sue last week and their attorney Stephen DeFeo said they will argue that Rutgers failed to implement or enforce policies that would have prevented or deterred the alleged invasion of privacy.
A Rutgers spokesman said that while the university was sympathetic to the Clementi family, it was not responsible for the student’s death.
