On January 17-18, 2015 two lives were forever altered by the actions of one. The Stanford Sexual Assault case has come into the news recently after the victim’s statement in the form of a letter to her attacker was released to the public. The letter is eloquent and powerful, detailing an assault that far too many women today can identify with at some part or another. What is truly disappointing about this case, other than the fact that it happened, is the precedent that Judge Pesky set for combating sexual assault and perpetuating rape culture.
Brock Turner was convicted on three different counts of sexual assault. He was facing up to fourteen years in prison, prosecutors asked for six, Turner never admitted to his wrong doings. Judge Pesky sentenced Turner to six months in county jail with probation. In his rationale for his decision Judge Pesky cited Turner’s “positive character,” lack of a criminal history and the effect jail would have on his life for giving him what many believe to be far too lenient of a punishment.
The reason that Judge Pesky’s decision is so detrimental to society and combating rape culture is because it shows that we as a society still do not see rape and sexual assault crimes as the horrendous acts that they are. The case presented to the judge and the jury should have been an easy case to settle given the fact that the prosecutors were able to present a rape kit, had strong witnesses, caught the perpetrator the night of the attack and had the victim’s powerful statement about the effect of this night on her life. The jury interpreted all of this evidence and came to the conclusion that Turner was guilty. Rape convictions are extremely hard to get and this case was well suited to receive a conviction and to set a precedent that rape is an atrocious crime that will be punished not tolerated. Judge Pesky royally f-ed up in sentencing Turner.
Nationally, for every 100 sexual assaults, only 32 are reported to the police. Of these 32 cases, three are referred to prosecutors and two will lead to a felony conviction and prison time, according to the Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network in Washington, D.C. When we as a society are living in a world where a measly two percent of rape cases reach a conviction with jail time, it is crucial that the people in positions of authority use the few cases they can to communicate to the public that rape will not be tolerated and if convicted your life will no longer be easy and you will pay the time your crime deserves.
Judge Pesky’s action is its own crime because it perpetuates the systemic injustice that sexual assault victims continue to face every day across the United States. Judge Pesky is an educated man, some might call him intelligent and even after weighing all the factors in this case he made the conscious decision to allow Turner to get off easy for his crimes.
As a society we need to shift the cultural norms surrounding sexual assault. These actions begin by teaching boys and young men the value of women, having conversations about what defines sexual assault and rape, not tolerating it at any level of society or government and empowering survivors of sexual assault and rape to seek help and speak up with the knowledge that we support them. Currently, the citizens of Santa Clara County have a prime opportunity to make a statement that sexual assault will not tolerated by voting to have Judge Pesky removed from his position.
