A former senior at a New Hampshire prep school has been acquitted of felony rape but convicted of misdemeanor sex charges regarding a 15-year-old freshman.
The jury of nine men and three women on Friday found Owen Labrie, of Tunbridge, Vermont, not guilty of raping the girl in an academic building at St. Paul's School two days before he graduated last year.
Labrie was convicted of four misdemeanor counts: three sex assault counts and one count of endangering the welfare of a child. He was also convicted of a felony charge of using a computer to lure a minor for sexual contact.
He faces up to a year in jail for the misdemeanors and 3.5 to 7 years for the felony.
He wept after the verdict was read. His mother sobbed into a tissue.
Labrie said he and the girl had consensual sexual contact but not intercourse when he was 18.
Prosecutors say the encounter was part of Senior Salute, a tradition at the school in which seniors try to have sex with underclassmen.
A statement was released Friday on behalf of the 16-year-old girl and her family after the verdict was read.
The statement says Labrie was held accountable "in some way" for the crimes he committed. However, the family says there is no joy in the outcome because of what the girl has lost.
The statement says St. Paul's School fostered a "toxic culture" that left students at risk of sexual violence.
The girl remained stoic in court after the verdict.
