After a short, three-month stay, Brock Turner was released from jail after sexually assaulting an unconscious woman behind a dumpster. Three months mean a lot of different things, depending on the situation, so allow me to put things into perspective.
The Spanish-American War
The exact date that this war started and ended is back and forth depending on where you look at, but according to reference.com, it lasted all of three months, two weeks, and four days.
Longer than Brock Turner's time spent for sexually assaulting a girl.
The Reign of King Duncan II, King of Scots
Yes, that's right, poor King Duncan II's reign only lasted 6 months after he seized the throne from Donald III. Why did his reign end so quickly? Good Ol' Donald assassinated him shortly after, reclaiming the throne for himself.
Six months was what Brock Turner had been sentenced to for serious sexual assault.
James A. Garfield, 20th President of the United States
Garfield served the U.S. for less than four months before he was assassinated.
Funny how one of the shortest presidencies in the U.S. lasted longer than this sexual assaulter in the U.S. served time in jail.
Possession of Marijuana
Under U.S. federal law, possession of marijuana is punishable by up to 1 year in prison, if it is your first offense. If someone is caught distributing or using marijuana, that penalty of 1 year will skyrocket.
If I want to avoid jail time, I'm better off sexually assaulting someone than possessing marijuana? Tell me how that makes sense.
Accidentally Killing Someone in the State of Georgia
So say I was in Georgia. I have a few drinks at the bar and drive myself home. I end up hitting someone and killing them. This is called "Involuntary Manslaughter" under Georgia law, which is punishable with a 1-10 year prison sentence. So, best case scenario, I can get a one year sentence in prison for accidentally killing someone because I was driving under the influence. I didn't mean to kill anyone, I just wanted to go home and thought I was fine to drive.
I can accidentally kill someone when intoxicated and receive a minimum of one year in prison. Brock Turner intentionally sexually violated and assaulted an unconscious, defenseless girl and is home free three months later. I'm not saying that driving under the influence is okay, but how is that right?
Lisa-Marie Presley and Nicolas Cage's Marriage
Even though Nicolas Cage stated that "they shouldn't have been married in the first place" after his marriage of 107 days, they were together longer than Brock Turner was in jail for ruining a young woman's life forever.
And you thought celebrity marriages were short.
I could go on and on with this, but hopefully, you get the point. It is baffling that we can sit here and allow a man who consciously, willingly, and intentionally sexually assaulted a woman who was unconscious. She couldn't say no. She had no choice. She did not want her life to be flipped completely upside down.
I encourage you to read this letter that was written by the woman who Brock Turner assaulted. It's long, but it is one of the most powerful things that I have ever read. I'll leave you with this quote from her letter:
"The seriousness of rape has to be communicated clearly, we should not create a culture that suggests we learn that rape is wrong through trial and error. The consequences of sexual assault needs to be severe enough that people feel enough fear to exercise good judgment even if they are drunk, severe enough to be preventative."
