The Steubenville rape case is far from over for four school officials, but one chapter has ended for one of the teens convicted in the August 2012 rape of a 16-year-old girl. Ma'lik Richmond was released from an Ohio juvenile detention facility yesterday after less than a year there, his lawyer confirmed. Richmond had been sentenced to a minimum of a year in such a facility, but the Wire notes he began serving his sentence April 1; Trent Mays was handed an additional year. What's next for Richmond: As WTRF explains, he'll need to register as a sex offender twice a year for the next two decades.
But because he is a juvenile sex offender, his name won't be listed on public sex offender websites, and, pending his rehabilitation, he can request that the classification later be dropped. His lawyer released a statement, which reads in part, "While away, Ma'Lik has reflected, learned, matured, and grown in many ways. He is a better, stronger person and looks forward to school, life, and spending time with family. At this point, Ma'Lik wants most to be a high school teenager." Meanwhile, WTOV ran a statement from Jane Doe's attorney that noted, "Although everyone hopes convicted criminals are rehabilitated, it is disheartening that this convicted rapist's press release does not make a single reference to the victim and her family." (More Ma'lik Richmond stories.)