and, of course, in this case, although he was not charged with the death of tyler clementi, tyler clementijumping off the g.w. bridge after this was broadcast. >> and really underscoring the importance of this case, a young man died in the end. however, this was not a case that would dissect, you know, his death and how that came about of tyler clementi. again, a 20-year-old, dharun ravi, now found guilty of a number of counts involving invasion of privacy, intimidation, tampering with evidence and witness tampering as well. we heard from the judge that he will set a date for sentencing later on today. thank you so much for helping us out on this breaking news story. we'll have much more on this case and others. i'm fredricka whitfield. suzanne malveaux will be back with much more of the newsroom after this. tle o's made from carefully selected oats that can help lower cholesterol. is it a superhero? kinda. ♪ we asked total strangers to watch it for us. thank you so much, i appreciate it, i'll be right back. they didn't take a dime. how much in fees does your bank take to watch your money

we don't know if tyler clementi ever saw that text.uez, cnn, new york. >> so the verdict is sure to have profound impact on the issue of privacy and social media. let's bring in our legal guys. avery friedman, good to see you. coming to us from cleveland. and richard herman, a new york criminal defense attorney and law professor joining us from las vegas. good to see you as well. so agentlemvery, you first. this is a new law being exercised and the outcome will have far implications especially as it pertains to privacy and the use of the internet. in what ways do you see? >> i think in a number of ways. the ravi conviction is a profound and watershed decision, but it turned on a new jersey law. while it will raise a national consciousness, i think there are very serious issues for the appeal. number one, the law basically was enacted, that is the ethic intimidation hate law, to go after neo nazis and extremist groups. the prosecutor went forward on this because of what ravi did. what's confusing here to me is if tyler clementi would no

what they did convict on, he was biased against tyler clementi and tyler clementi felt intimidated by him. just by going over it, you see how difficult that really is, because tyler clementi wasn't leer to testify. so the jury had to look at all the facts ux and they determined that tyler clementi felt intimidated because of his sexual orientation. this is the first time this type of statute has been used in this way. of course, now new jersey has this very, very robust cyber bullying law, but that wasn't what he was convicted of. he was convicting of a hate crime. and i think it really is a game changer in many respects, because this is a wake-up call to our young people, to anyone that uses social media, quite frankly, because now you when be held accountable for those words, for those hateful words that you use on the internet. >> do you think -- i mean, he could get up to ten years. do you think he will get that? >> in new jersey, when you get convicted of a second-degree crime, lie bias intimidation, a felony, there's a presumption that you should be sentenced to jail time. five

no, i didn't bully tyler clementi. >> reporter: do you think tyler clementi thought you were bullying him? >> no, i don't think he thought that at all. >> reporter: did you want to intimidate him? frighten him? >> no. >> reporter: shame him? >> no. >> reporter: make him feel that what he was and what he was doing was wrong? >> no. i would never feel that about anyone for any reason. >> reporter: do you hate gay people? >> i don't. i don't hate gay people. >> reporter: do you believe tyler clementi was intimidated by you and your actions? >> he knew that i wasn't trying to, like, intimidate him because he was gay and scare him because he was gay. i think he understood that. >> he faces up to ten years behind bars. you can catch more of that on a special edition of "20/20," at 10:00, 9:00 central, on abc. >>> a boston jury acquitted a man accused of shooting three adults and a toddler to death. the deadlock on his accomplice now stands. and it outraged the victims' relatives. the state's case rested largely on the credibility of one witness. unfortunately, he confessed to being an accom

what they did convict on, he was biased against tyler clementi and tyler clementi felt intimidated by him. just by going over it, you see how difficult that really is, because tyler clementi wasn't here to testify. so the jury had to look at all the facts and they determined that tyler clementi felt intimidated because of his sexual orientation. this is the first time this type of statute has been used in this way. of course, now new jersey has this very, very robust cyber bullying law, but that wasn't what he was convicted of. he was convicting of a hate crime. and i think it really is a game changer in many respects, because this is a wake-up call to our young people, to anyone that uses social media, quite frankly, because now you will be held accountable for those words, those hateful words you use on the internet. >> do you think -- i mean, he could get up to ten years. do you think he will get that? >> in new jersey, when you get convicted of a second-degree crime, like bias intimidation, a felony, there's a presumption that you should be sentenced to jail time. five to ten year

>> no, no, i didn't bully tyler clementi. >> reporter: do you think tyler clementi thought you were bullyingim? >> no, i don't think he thought that at all. >> reporter: did you want to intimidate him, shame him? >> no. >> reporter: make him feel that what he was and what he was doing was wrong? >> no. i would never feel that about anyone for any reason. >> reporter: do you hate gay people? >> i don't. >> reporter: do you believe tyler clementi was intimidate bid you and your actions? >> he knew i wasn't trying to intimidate him and scare him because he was gay. i think he understood that. >> reporter: you feel confident of that? >> i do. >> reporter: did you want to out tyler clementi? >> no. >> reporter: did you record him having sex? >> no. >> reporter: it was all said and people believed it. >> yeah. >> reporter: and what did that make you? >> made me the worst possible person. >> reporter: face of the bully. >> yeah. >> reporter: we want answers when gay kids die for bad reasons. >> yeah. >> reporter: we want to blame people because a lot of people get away with it. and in this situatio

clementi. >> yeah. tyler clementi's e-mail he was going to jump off the george washington bridge was a format. >> thank you both. this is what i needed. refocus. >> so nice to have you here at cnn. come back. >> i'll do cue cards even if they don't give me a job to come back to this position. >>> when i come back here with you, one on one with magic johnson and his love pli wife cookie johnson. they're first interview together outside their home. this is delicious okay... is this where we're at now? we just eat whatever tastes good? like these sweet honey clusters... actually there's a half a day's worth of fiber in every ... why stop at cereal? bring on the pork chops and the hot fudge. fantastic. are you done sweetie? yea [ male announcer ] fiber one. the priceline negotiator went down in that fiery bus crash. yes i was. we lost a beautiful man that day. but we gained the knowledge that priceline has thousands and thousands of hotels on sale every day. so i can choose the perfect one for me without bi

clementi. >> yeah. tyler clementi's e-mail he was going to jump off the george washington bridge was a format. >> thank you both. this is what i needed. refocus. >> so nice to have you here at cnn. come back. >> i'll do cue cards even if they don't give me a job to come back to this position. >>> when i come back here with you, one on one with magic johnson and his love pli wife cookie johnson. they're first interview together outside their home. sometimes, i feel like it's me against my hair. [ female announcer ] weak, damaged hair needs new aveeno nourish+ strengthen. active naturals wheat formulas restore strength for up to 90% less breakage in three washes. for strong, healthy hair with life, new aveeno nourish+ strengthen. >>> i'm arsenio hall filling in for piers. now my exclusive interview with the man, the legend, flba superstar magic johnson. everybody knows he's a good friend of mine and he's here with his better half. the lovely, the talenteded, the denim queen cookie johnson. how you guys do

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clementi. >> yeah. tyler clementi's e-mail he was going to jump off the george washington bridge was a format. >> thank you both. this is what i needed. refocus. >> so nice to have you here at cnn. come back. >> i'll do cue cards even if they don't give me a job to come back to this position. >>> when i come back here with you, one on one with magic johnson and his love pli wife cookie johnson. they're first interview together outside their home. ♪ oh! [ baby crying ] ♪ what started as a whisper ♪ every day, millions of people choose to do the right thing. ♪ slowly turned to a scream ♪ there's an insurance company that does that, too. liberty mutual insurance. responsibility. what's your policy? ♪ amen, omen introducing gold choice. the freedom you can only get from hertz to keep the car you reserved or simply choose another. and it's free. ya know, for whoever you are that day. it's just another way you'll be traveling at the speed of hertz. battle speech right? may i? capital one is issuing a venture

tyler clementi took his life after learning about the webcam. chris cuomo has been on the case from the start. >> reporter:. took 12 hours for the jury to return a verdict that showed little mercy. dharun ravi, a former rutgers freshman, guilty on all phone counts, the most serious bias, intimidation, a hate crime, carrying a sentence of up to ten years in prison. ravi remained stoic throughout, only a hint of crushing disappointment after refusing a plea deal that would have included no jail time. his parents kept their heads low. one juror was confident in the confident. >> i feel it was the right thing. the state did prove its case. the charges stem from ravi's using a webcam to spy on his rutgers roommate in a gay encounter with an older man. tyler clementi an openly gay soft-spoken violinist, found out about it when he spotted an invitation on twitter. that second viewing never happened, but the next day clementi jumped to his death from the george washington bridge. >> guilty. >> clementi's parents were also there for today's verdict. >> t

but the next day, clementi jumped to his death from the george washington bridge. clementi's parents, also there for today's verdict. >> the trial was painful for us, as it would be for any parent who must sit and listen to people talk about bad and inappropriate things that were done to their child. >> reporter: the hate crime conviction means jurors decided ravi intimidated clementi because he was gay. though few witnesses at trial remembered ravi ever saying anything homophobic. >> when i am uncomfortable about something, i try to joke about it. we were just joking around. >> reporter: the suicide sparked a national anti-bullying campaign, prompting celebrities to speak out. >> and every day, it gets better. >> reporter: the defense insisted throughout what happened here was an immature prank. >> just because we do something stupid, we make mistakes, especially when we're young, it doesn't mean we're hateful and we're bigoted or we're a criminal. >> reporter: sentencing is expected in may. ravi is going to serve time. and, david, because he is an indian national

he did not directly torment tyler clementi. in fact, the jury found he probably did not intend to intimidate. this case is about our feelings and outrage about bullying. that is not what our justice system is for. it is also about sending messages on one way or another. and that is what people want this case to be about -- , we will tolerate no more. >> it is a hot topic these days. dharun ravi turned down a plea deal that would have kept him out of jail. what are his thoughts now? >> he sticks to it. he says i could not put myself out as someone who was motivated by hate of a gay person. i cannot do it. if i have to face a jail i will. you have to respect the position, even if you do not respect the basis for the position. here is one thing. the attention on bullying is good. it is this the best case to send the message? that is a good question. >> the exclusive interview will air tonight at 10:00 on "20/20." after that stay with us for abc news at 11. still ahead, a final look at the you're on timeout leo! some things won't l

is he not charged in any way in the death of tyler clementi.her or not he intimidated and invaded the privacy of tyler clementi. we have our legal commentator and i want to start with the break down of the 15 charges. >> yeah, what we saw here was the consistent finding by the jury in that they found the defendant here guilty of the bias crime of intimidation against tyler cla menty but not against the man that was in the room when the spying was occurred. the bias charges were coupled with the lesser invasion of privacy charges which means he could not have been found guilty of the more serious charges without having been first found guilty of the lesser charges, so the jury came back, in fact with if you take a look at the counts and the findings on them, they found that the defendant was guilty of invasion of privacy and tamperring with evidence and in addition to that he was found guilty of doing so with the intent of intimidating tyler clementi because he was gay but not intimidating the other person in the room with him. he faces up to te

the 20-year-old was not charged with tyler clementi's death. but ravi's actions, including the spying on his roommate with a web cam, came three days before clementi took his own life. no direct connection was alleged, but the case became a flash point for discussions about bullying, intimidation, and attitudes towards gay men and women. kate zernike has been covering the case for "the new york times," and has been at the courthouse in new brunswick today. have any jurors talked to the media? >> we've talked to one juror. it wasn't just one message. it was several, which showed an intent. that showed his intention to invade his privacy >> does this open him to deportation? >> yes, that's one of the dangers. he didn't believe he intimidated anyone. >> reporter: any reaction? read out guilty on bias intimidation his eyes popped out and he looked away from the jury he seemed surprised by that. he sa stoically and left the courthouse without saying anything. he wasn't charged in way were the death of tyler but did the suicide find it's way into the

the same man that clementy's roommate allegedly spid on with a web cam while mb and tyler clementi were together. he said, i thought it was strange, being in a comp migz position. it caught my eye that there was a camera lens looking right at me. mb does not want ravi to go to jail. he faces up to ten years in prison. during the five-hour testimony, the 32-year-old witness said after meeting the 18-year-old clementy on a social networking site, they had three sexual encounters. during the defense cross-examinati cross-examination, he was vague and sometimes awkward. he became uncomfortable leaving the dorm after the second encounter because a group of about five students were staring at him. it was like they were looking at me for some reason, he told the court. the defense tried to drive home that mb didn't know tyler's last name until he read about tyler's suicide in the paper. for "good morning america," linsey davis, abc news, new jersey. >>> let's get back out to ginger zee in indiana for another check on weather. good morning, ginger. >> good morning, bianna and good morning, ever

tyler clementi's bed on the left. ravi's desk is on the right.can show you where the web cam is. how important is the positioning of the web cam? >> the positioning is very, very important because this defense that i was afraid he was stealing my stuff so that's why i was taping him, obviously you wouldn't want to be taping the bed if that was the case. you'd be concerned about other areas. >> it would be on your desk, your closet. >> exactly. so i think, erin, that that defense is not going to fly. and i understand why the judge tried to protect m.b.'s identity. the thought is you don't want to punish him by publicly outing him at this point in time. but there's a certain irony to all of this in that this law, this bias intimidation law is meant to protect gays and get americans to understand that gays are normal and they should be treated like every other american, and yet this trial we're having him testify without his name being revealed, are we stigmatizing him by treating him differently than we treat normal victims? i don't know. we'll hav

i think tyler clementi's suicide led prosecutors to bring these charges.ut technically, the jury is not going to consider the suicide. >> ravi could obviously get a prison term here, up to ten years, i believe. is that reasonable? >> well, there's a disagreement that people have about this. new jersey has the strictest law in the country on invasion of privacy. what the law says basically is, if you film somebody engaging in an act of intimacy and you stream it publicly, you let somebody else see it, you're guilty of a felony. a very serious crime. >> they have a law about that specific thing. >> that specific thing in new jersey. it is the strictest law in the country. then they take it to another level. they say if you filmed that because of bias intimidation, because somebody is gay and you want to humiliate them, we're doubling the sentence to ten years. so as a result of that, ravi faces ten years in prison if this jury finds him guilty, as opposed to looking at this as some stupid adolescent college prank which is how it would have been treated in pr

in his first interview, 20-year-old dahru ravi opened up about the death of tyler clementi. >> if people want to hear this boy say by, i'm sorry. i should have never done it, that's a hard thing to do when they don't think they're a bully. >> reporter: a kid who, along with his friends, wasn't motivated boy hate but fascinated by his roommate's life-style. >> we think they're so open and accepting, this new generation, but the problems are still there. >> reporter: ravie is facing jail time talking about the impact the decisions had on tyler clementi. >> i don't think what ravi and his friends helped, made him feel even worse with things he was struggling with. >> reporter: you can see the interview right here on "20/20". >>> the nation's first catholic cathedral is closing for repairs. last summer's earthquake caused $3 million to $5 million in damages and the eight-month repair is about it begin. >>> engineers are sure the building is structurally sound. those aren't chips, rather long meandering cracks visible from the floor 100 feet below. while the church feels it surveyed the damag

even after finding out ravi spied on him, clementi invited his guest an older man back to his room. he's accused of setting up the webcam to -- a day later clementi committed suicide by jumping from the george washington bridge. >> three weeks in his college experience and he finds out that his sexual orientation has been broadcast. >> randall pinkston, cbs news, new brunswick, new jersey. >>> straight ahead, your wednesday morning weather and in sports, a pair of huge comebacks kick off march madness. and the first fan takes a friend to the game. adness. and he takes a friend to the game. lose those lines, for up to a year! juvÉderm® xc, is the gel filler your doctor uses to instantly smooth out lines right here. temporary side effects include redness, pain, firmness, swelling, bumps, or risk of infection. ask your doctor about juvÉderm® xc. >>> here's a look at today's forecast. in some cities around the country. new york, sunny, 68. miami, partly sunny, 82. chicago, mostly sunny, 80. dallas, mostly cloudy, still 75. l.a., morning clouds, 66. >>> time now for a check of the nation

clementi's parents called it a painful trial. >> we wanted to be here for our son and because we believe this trial was important because it dealt with important issues for our society and young people today. >> reporter: one juror called it a tough decision. >> you don't necessarily go in there thinking you want to ruin someone's life. at the same time, you've got to think of all the facts and the testimony. >> reporter: ravi said nothing as he left court. the verdict continues to draw attention to the issue of bullying, and some legal experts say it sends a message. >> i don't think it's excusable as a prank. people need to take actions seriously and understand consequences. 18-year-olds under the law are expected to understand their behavior has consequences. >> reporter: ravi faces up to ten years in prison when sentenced in may. rehema ellis, nbc news, new york. >>> to the news out of the brutal drug war raging in mexico. we learned this week the number of children being used as cross-border drug mules has grown ten-fold since '08. there is a big debate how much drug violence is spi

what happened to tyler clementi is a horrible tragedy. in a court of law bringing it up to that level, i'm not sure if we'll get there. >> a mother in missouri said she was tired of a drug dealer trying to get her son hooked on heroine again. she clubbed him twice with a baseball bat. >> they came to my house. they came to my work looking for him trying to get him to buy again when he was clean. it is the state prosecuting me for trying to protect my son. >> do you have any regrets? >> no, no. he is -- my children are my life. they're wanting to take his life away, and i can't let that happen. >> so the state is prosecuting her. what's going on here? >> what happened was the drug dealer actually showed up at her house. they've been tracking her son down when they're trying to get him clean, and she had a baseball bat with her. the dealer reached into his car. she thought he was going for a gun. that's a reasonable assumption. so she whacked him with a baseball bat to basically defend herself. >> he's a drug dealer. don't forget that. >> t