NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J., March 14 (UPI) -- The jury in the New Jersey gay student webcam spying trial ended its first day of deliberation Wednesday without reaching a verdict.
Before it was sent home for the day, the jury asked Superior Court Judge Glenn Berman to repeat a bias intimidation statute he had provided earlier, The (Newark) Star-Ledger reported. The jurors specifically asked that the judge "review for us again all of Count 2, including the definition of intimidation and purpose."
The jury went home at 4 p.m. EDT and will resume its deliberations at 9 a.m. Thursday.
Former Rutgers University student Dharun Ravi, 20, is charged with 15 counts for using a webcam Sept. 19, 2010, to spy on Tyler Clementi during a homosexual encounter. Clementi, 18, died when he jumped off New York's George Washington Bridge three days later.
Authorities allege Ravi was motivated by a hatred for gays. The defendant's lawyer maintain he acted immaturely but is not prejudiced, biased or a cyberbully as he has been portrayed.
More than 303 witnesses were questioned and 100 pieces of evidence were presented during the trial's 13 days.
Berman gave 90 minutes of instructions to the five men and seven women on the jury, who are deliberating on the 15 counts of bias intimidation, invasion of privacy, and tampering with evidence, The Star-Ledger said. Ravi could be sentenced to 10 years in prison if convicted on all charges.
