Brock Turner, the famous former Stanford student that was given a three-month sentence for sexual assault, is appealing his conviction. Reports began to surface over the weekend that he filed for an appeal. Activists are outraged at the appeal, which was delivered to California’s Sixth District Court of Appeals.
The appeal, a lengthy 172 pages long, claims that Turner was a victim of prosecutorial misconduct and was subject to deprivation of due process.
Emily Doe, the victim in the case, is the center of the appeal. Turner’s lawyers focus on the victim’s, whose name isn’t revealed to the public, alcohol consumption. The 172-page brief claims that the assault “happening behind a dumpster,” was a form or propaganda against Turner.
Activists claim that the assault, is still an assault whether or not it happened behind a dumpster. The appeal is said to be heavy on victim-blaming.
A friend of the victim claims that “I don’t think Mr. Turner or his family ever accepted his guilt.” Turner never showed remorse or took responsibility for his crime during the case. Turner, a former swimming star, was found by two graduate students, lying on an unconscious woman. The woman, partially clothed when found, had been drinking at a frat party together.
Turner “digitally” penetrated the woman while she was unconscious. Graduate students tackled Turner to the ground as he tried to run away from the scene.
“Sex crime charges are some of the most serious charges that a person can face. Sex crime convictions carry significant penalties, including lengthy periods of incarceration and hefty fines,” states Keller Law Offices website.
Turner, a high-profile case, was handed just three months in prison for his assault. Turner is hoping to overturn the conviction so that he doesn’t have to be a registered sex offender for the rest of his life.
The case received national attention after Doe read the following statement in court: “You took away my worth, my privacy, my energy, my time, my intimacy, my confidence, my own voice, until today. The damage is done, no one can undo it. And now we both have a choice. We can let this destroy us, I can remain angry and hurt and you can be in denial, or we can face it head on, I accept the pain, you accept the punishment, and we move on.”
Turner was given a six-month sentence, but was released for good behavior in just three months.
Critics claim that the judge was too lenient on Turner. The issue with Turner’s appeal is that his lawyers are asking for the conviction to be overturned, the requirement to register as a sex offender be removed and that a new trial take place.
Turner may receive a longer prison sentence if the new trial goes through.
Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge Aaron Persky was the subject of criticism following the conviction. Persky had a similar background to Turner and is said to have sympathized with the student. A campaign to remove Persky as a judge is underway following the conviction.
Turner’s case sparked change in California that altered the very definition of rape to include unconscious victims.
