The Long Island teen at the center of a bogus rape threat on the Internet that led to the slaying of a teenage boy said only hours before the conviction of her friend’s killer that she hopes he receives the maximum sentence.
“I think he should get as much time as possible. I really do,” said Jenny Martin, 16, yesterday, before a Suffolk County jury in their fourth day of deliberations came back with a conviction of John White for second-degree manslaughter.
The events leading up to 17-year-old Daniel Cicciaro’s slaying began with a horrifying online message that popped up on Martin’s computer screen in the fall of 2005:
“Let’s go to Jenny Martin’s house and rape her.”
The threat – which turned out to be a sick prank – deeply frightened Martin.
“I was scared. My heart stopped. I freaked out. I didn’t know what to do,” she told The Post about the moment she read the message, which her boyfriend had forwarded to her after he read it online.
The threat – which the white teens assumed was made by Aaron White, a black teenager – triggered the fatal confrontation between Aaron’s dad and Cicciaro as the teen sought to protect Jenny and her honor, prosecutors said.
Last night, a jury found John White guilty of one count of manslaughter and one count of criminal possession of a weapon. He faces five-to-15 years behind bars.
Martin’s Brother, Craig Jr., said the jury’s decision was a relief.
“The truth came out,” he said. “I’m just happy that he’s not getting off.”
Jenny and her Sound Beach family have no forgiveness in their hearts for White.
“He never showed any remorse,” said Jenny’s mom, Susan Martin. “He never did anything after Dano [Cicciaro] got shot.”
Jenny saw Aaron only twice in the nine months after the message was posted, And both times she avoided him.
Then, on Aug. 9, 2006, he showed up at brother Craig’s 19th-birthday party.
About 25 teenagers were at the soiree, enjoying barbecue and splashing in the family’s above-ground pool.
When Aaron and a longtime family friend, Michael Longo, arrived around 10:30 p.m., Jenny’s fear returned.
“I was trembling. I was very scared,” she recalled. The then-15-year-oldtold her dad, “He’s got to leave, dad. He’s got to leave.”
Craig Jr. and his friend, Cicciaro, asked Aaron to leave, and he did.
Cicciaro went back to Jenny to ask what had happened.
“I told him the situation, because I’m like his little sister,” Jenny said. “He said, like, ‘How could he do this? How dare he?’ He gave me a huge hug and said, ‘Jenny, I love you.’ ”
Known for his chivalry, an infuriated Cicciaro asked Longo, who stayed at the party, for Aaron’s phone number. Cicciaro then began a series of heated phone calls with Aaron. Cicciaro and four friends would eventually drive in two cars to the White family’s home, only minutes away.
“That was a terrible night,” she said.
Cicciaro was shot by White’s father, John, who met the mob of white teens seeking justice on his front lawn with a .32-caliber Beretta.
Now, Jenny lives with the knowledge that her terrified reaction to the phony message triggered the deadly confrontation.
“I have a humongous amount of guilt. And I’m still dealing with it,” she said.
John White’s lawyers claim he was trying to protect his family from a “lynch mob” and that he accidentally fired the gun when Cicciaro tried to grab it, but did not win the confidence of the jury.
jfanelli@nypost.com