Brock Allen Turner (born August 1, 1995) is an American convict and former student at Stanford University who garnered national attention within the United States in early 2015 arrested on five charges of rape, and when those charges were dropped and he was instead convicted of three charges of sexual assault in March 2016. The sentence sparked controversy and debate on gender equality and social equality in the United States.
On January 18, 2015, Turner, a student athlete at Stanford, sexually penetrated a 22-year-old woman with his finger. According to police, prosecutors, and a jury, she lacked the capacity to give legal consent. He was found by two bystanders who testified that they intervened because the woman appeared to be unconscious. The bystanders restrained him until he was apprehended by police and subsequently arrested on charges of rape. The victim remained unconscious and unresponsive for several more hours. The charges of rape were later dropped by the prosecution after results from a DNA testing.
In March 2016, Turner was convicted of three charges of felony sexual assault. The charges made him eligible for 14 years in prison. Prosecutors recommended six years in prison while probation officials recommended a “moderate” county jail sentence. In June 2016, Judge Aaron Persky sentenced him to six months of jail and three years of probation. Turner’s six-month sentencing and Emily Doe’s impact statement requesting a longer sentence made national and international news. The case led to a campaign for the recall or resignation of Judge Persky.
