The charge was dropped at the request of Prince’s family.
Austin RenaudNORTHAMPTON – A Hampshire Superior Court judge agreed Tuesday to seal the record of the statutory rape charge against Austin Renaud, one of the defendants in the Phoebe Prince case.
The charge was dropped at the request of Prince’s family on May 5, the same day the cases of the other five defendants were resolved. Although he was not convicted and his case never went to trial, the charge could have shown up on a background check by a potential employer or school, according to Renaud’s lawyer, Terrence M. Dunphy. Prosecutor Steven Gagne did not oppose the motion to seal the record.
Prince, 15, hanged herself in 2010 following what prosecutors say was a period of bullying in school. Her story made international headlines and helped spark a campaign against school bullying. Renaud was not charged with harassing or bullying Prince.
Her death, and the suicide of a 11-year-old Carl Walker-Hoover of Springfield, prompted a state law requiring each school district to come up with an anti-bullying policy.