Last week, a Stanford sex offender received a six-month jail sentence after being proven guilty with three felony cases of assault. The ruling drew flak among the academe, critics and the victim herself who in a 12-page statement wrote, "Someone who cannot take full accountability for his actions does not deserve a mitigating sentence."
One Saturday night inside Stanford University, the victim, alias "Emily Doe" and Brock Turner, the convicted, met each other for the first time at a fraternity party (via NBC). Turner, a freshman at Stanford who got accepted with an athletic scholarship, crossed paths with Emily and her sister who decided that going to a nearby party would be a fun bonding time.
For some reason, the two sisters lost sight of each other at the party and Brock and Emily ended up together, intoxicated. Emily doesn't remember anything after that. Apparently, Brock led her to the dumpster and was assaulting her unconscious body when two Swedes saw him on the act.
They were able to hold Turner until the police came and the half-dressed Emily was taken to the hospital (via The New York Times). She had abrasions and underwent tests which she narrated in detail on her statement.
"My clothes were confiscated and I stood naked while the nurses held a ruler to various abrasions on my body and photographed them. The three of us worked to comb the pine needles out of my hair, six hands to fill one paper bag. To calm me down, they said it's just the flora and fauna, flora and fauna.
I had multiple swabs inserted into my vagina and anus, needles for shots, pills, had a nikon pointed right into my spread legs. I had long, pointed beaks inside me and had my vagina smeared with cold, blue paint to check for abrasions," she recalled.
According to Emily's narration, the main argument of the defendant's counsel was she didn't remember anything, and that both she and Brock were under the influence of alcohol. This meant that the court had only Turner's word to trust.
"Worst of all, I was warned, because he now knows you don't remember, he's going to get to write the script. He can say whatever he wants and no one can contest it. I had no power, I had no voice, I was defenseless. My memory would be used against me.
My testimony was weak, was incomplete, and I was made to believe that perhaps, I am not enough to win this. That's so damaging. His attorney constantly reminded the jury, the only one we can believe is Brock, because she doesn't remember. That helplessness was traumatizing," Emily wrote.
Fortunately, in favor of Emily's side, two witnesses and her bruised body proved Turner's guilt. After a year of trial, the court ruled that Brock Turner is no doubt guilty of campus sexual assault, though the punishment took everyone by surprise.
Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge Aaron Persky punished Turner with a six-month jail sentence, three-year probation and a lifetime identification as a sex offender. His decision was based on Turner's spotless criminal record and young age, saying that given Turner's profile, he would be severely damaged if given a heavier punishment (via CNN).
As per NBC News, Judge Persky is a Stanford alumnus who was also an athlete playing for the lacrosse team. Stanford Law Professor Michelle Dauber believed that this influenced the judge's decision who was "persuaded by the background of the young man as an elite athlete."
In Change.org, a recall petition was started and has gained 191,000 signatures as of posting. The petition claimed that Judge Persky was lenient in punishing Brock Turner who is "a white male star athlete at a prestigious university" (via CNN).
As per CNN, the site TheRobingRoom.com were filled with negative criticism of Persky's judgment. A number of critics were enraged with the leniency, disrespect for women, and empathy given to a rapist. Twitter also talked about Brock Turner with 48,000 tweets containing his name.
The father of the defendant, Dan Turner, released a statement saying how depressed his son was for losing his scholarship and gaining public shame. According to him, his son can't eat his favorite steak anymore and won't be joining the Olympics in the future just because the "20 minutes of action" changed his life (via The New York Times).
Whether or not the court would recall its decision, we can't do anything than wait in the coming days. Comment your thoughts below and follow Parent Herald for more news and updates.
