We're fortunate in America to have a justice system that, a vast majority of the time, punishes the guilty and protects the innocent. Yet sometimes, criminals can and do slip through the fingers of justice. But when a rapist gets a mere slap on the wrist, when a judge singlehandedly passes down an extremely lenient sentence for a serious crime, when the testimony of not even the perpetrator, but the perpetrator's father, is taken more seriously than that of the victim, that constitutes a true travesty of justice. There are so many things wrong with Brock Turner v. State of California that it would be nearly impossible to list and explain them all, but here is a short list that is by no means definitive.
1. Prosecutors recommended six years, but Judge Persky gave him six months.
Even six years would have been rather lenient given that the Department of Justice found that the average rape conviction resulted in a sentence of just under 14 years in prison. But a sentence of a mere six months? That is an insult to justice.
2. California law allows for the sentence to be halved if Turner displays good behavior.
That means that Turner will likely walk free after serving less than a twentieth of the jail time prosecutors asked for!
3. Given that few rapes even lead to an arrest, let alone a conviction, this sentence reinforces the idea that rapists can get away with their crimes.
A study by RAINN (Rape, Abuse, and Incest National Network) of the Department of Justice concluded that 46 out of 100 rapes are reported. Out of those 12, 46 lead to an arrest. Then, a mere 5 out of 12 lead to a felony conviction, and just THREE lead to actual jail time. But when that 'jail time' is a mere three months? What kind of twisted message is that sending to society?
4. The presiding judge, Alan Persky, claimed that "Turner would be adversely affected by a lengthy prison sentence."
Well, duh, that's the point. A major purpose of incarceration is to punish one for crimes committed. Since when does justice seek to cushion and protect criminals instead of victims? The defendant should not receive any more consideration than the victim. Unfortunately, it appears this judge was more influenced by the pleas of the perpetrator than the concerns of the victim.
5. Turner's father published a letter claiming that his son should not be harshly punished for "20 minutes of action."
Newsflash: a crime is a crime regardless of how long it takes to commit. Mr. Turner's defense of his son not only minimizes the crime but ignores the reality of the law.
6. Racial bias definitely mitigated Turner's sentencing.
At each step of the process, Turner was helped by the fact that he is a white male. Not only are whites less likely to be arrested, but they are also less likely to be denied bail, less likely to have problems finding a defender, and far less likely to actually be incarcerated. One can compare Turner's conviction to that of the infamous "Affluenza teen" who received a mere two years for killing four people while driving drunk--he was white. On the other hand, one can hold up the sad story of African American ex-football player Brian Banks, who was not only tried as an adult despite being a minor, but served five years for a rape he, in fact, did not even commit! The sad truth is, Turner would have in all likelihood received a harsher sentence were he not white.
7. Vast numbers of people are serving far longer jail sentences for non-violent crimes, especially drug offenses.
Especially because of cruel policies such as mandatory sentencing and three-strikes-and-you're-out, there are inmates serving up to life in prison for offenses arguably far less severe than rape. While the average sentence for rape is 14 years, as noted previously, simply being convicted of having sold marijuana three times (not even being convicted three times) in California results in an automatic 55-year sentence! Or, consider the example of Timothy L. Tyler, who was automatically sentenced to life in prison - for possessing 13 sheets of LSD. These people never hurt anyone. But Brock Turner raped an unconscious woman, for which he was sentenced to far, far less jail time.
8. Even the way Turner was treated in the media reflected an element of privilege.
For one, before his mugshot was available, newspapers used the most innocuous pictures of Turner available, such as his high school yearbook photo or his graduation photo. Compare to stories of African-American defendants, who are much more likely to be shown holding guns, for example. In fact, most media outlets didn't even call Turner a rapist after his conviction, they continued to call him terms ranging from "star athlete" to "Stanford swimmer." One article even listed his swim times at the bottom of the web page!
If anything, this case highlights one sad reality: as long as society continues to assume that white men who attend elite schools inherently possess good character, justice will never be done.
