Outrage is being directed at a judge who presided over the sentencing of a former Stanford University swim team member who was convicted of three sexual abuse counts---with some calling on his removal from the bench.
At least 250,000 people have signed petitions, including a popular one on Change.org, demanding that Judge Aaron Persky face consequences for sentencing the Brock Turner to six months in county jail for raping an unconscious woman.
The case gained the country’s attention after the unnamed victim wrote a letter describing her ordeal.
Her letter clashed with a complaint Turner’s father wrote, who said that his son’s life had been ruined. “He will never be his happy go-lucky self with that easy going personality and welcoming smile,” his father, Dan Turner, said.
Judge Pesky explained his decision—what many critics described was a lenient punishment: “A prison sentence would have a severe impact on him. I think he will not be a danger to others.” He said that since Turner was drunk at the time of the attack, he should be treated differently.
“There is less moral culpability attached to the defendant who is … intoxicated,” the judge said, according to the New York Times.
