(Reuters) – A former Rutgers University student convicted of bias crimes for using a webcam to spy on his gay roommate’s sexual encounter was released from a New Jersey jail on Tuesday after serving 20 days of his 30-day sentence.
Dharun Ravi, 20, looking unshaven, left the Middlesex County jail shortly after 8:30 a.m. EDT (1230 GMT) accompanied by his attorney. They left from a side exit and avoided a throng of media that was awaiting his release.
Ravi received a 10-day credit for good behavior, allowing him to leave after serving 20 days of his 30-day sentence imposed by Judge Glenn Berman.
He began his jail term on May 31 after being convicted in March of bias crimes for using a computer-mounted webcam to spy on his roommate, Tyler Clementi, 18, and an older man he met online in their shared Rutgers dorm room.
Days after learning that Ravi had snooped on him and used social media to urge others to watch as well, Clementi jumped to his death from the George Washington Bridge in September 2010.
On Monday, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials said they would not seek to deport Ravi, an Indian citizen who has lived most of his life in the United States. (Writing by Dan Burns; Editing by Doina Chiacu and Ellen Wulfhorst)