Protecting Tyler Clementi

Defense attorneys for Dharun Ravi asked a state appellate court last week for permission to read Tyler Clementi's computer files and a note found in his backpack, and according to an editorial in The Jersey Record, that permission should be denied. Clementi, a Ridgewood native, committed suicide last year, not long after Rhavi, his Rutgers University roommate, allegedly used a webcam to secretly tape a romantic encounter between Clementi and another man. Rhavi is charged with multiple counts, including invasion of privacy and bias intimidation, for allegedly filming Clementi because he was gay. A judge turned down the attorneys' initial request to see Clementi's writings. The appellate court, argues the newspaper, should do the same. Writes The Record:

Rhavi's lawyers argue the material will help them prepare for their client's defense. We don't see how. Rhavi is on trial for actions completed days before Clementi ended his life, not for directly causing the freshman to jump off the George Washington Bridge. What Clementi wrote in computer files titled "Why is everything so painful," "Sorry" and "Gah" is not relevant to the case. What is relevant is allegedly broadcasting a roommate's tryst without permission, and using Twitter to describe what he saw. Clementi's terrible death sparked national debate about inappropriate Internet use, homophobia and the difficulty of being a gay teenager. New Jersey's new anti-bullying law moved quickly through the Legislature in the wake of the suicide. Rhavi's lawyers have an obligation to represent their client the best they can. If they think that includes reading Clementi's computer files and a handwritten note, fine. But the decision rests with the court. It should deny the request. Clementi has given enough. His private life has been broadcast for all to read. The public has learned about his instant-messaging text to a friend describing his parents' reaction when they learned he was gay; they read about the obnoxious comments each roommate made about the other; and about Clementi's message to a friend after the webcam incident and Rhavi's tweets. Now, the defense hopes to delve further, with an eye to finding more information relevant to the case. Don't look there. Let Clementi's thoughts on why everything is so painful stay his alone. Let him have this last shred of privacy.