Student in Rape Comment Video Drops Out of College

The Ohio teenager caught on a video joking about the alleged rape of a teen girl has left Ohio State University amid an avalanche of negative attention, reports the Steubenville Herald-Star. Michael Nodianos decided it would be an "insurmountable distraction" to return after his first semester, says his lawyer, adding that Nodianos had been harassed in his dorm and by hackers of the school's email system ever since the video went viral in the high-profile case.

Nodianos is "ashamed and embarrassed by the comments on the video," says his lawyer. "He regrets those comments. ... I don't believe it was a crime to make the video, but it was stupid." The 18-year-old is not charged in the case, but two of his former classmates in Steubenville, Ohio, are due in court next month on rape charges. The hacking group Anonymous posted the Nodianos video. Meanwhile, another Steubenville student, one who hosted a party the night of the alleged attacks, might lose his wrestling scholarship at Kent State, notes USA Today. (More Steubenville stories.)