This past week, former Standford student and convicted sexual assailant Brock Turner returned from behind bars after carrying out only three months of his already-shortened six-month sentence.
He was granted this early release because of his “good behavior” while incarcerated.
A sex offender walking free after serving just one twenty-fourth of his suggested sentence is enraging, of course, because many feel that justice has not been served.
But this judgment from the Santa Clara County Jail is troubling for numerous reasons beyond that gut feeling of injustice. It’s not quite sound logistically, and it paints a grim picture for the future of the fight against campus sexual assault.
For one, there has been little to no precedent set for the release of an inmate with such a short sentence to begin with. According to 18 USCS § 3624, “a prisoner who is serving a term of imprisonment of more than one year, other than a term of imprisonment for the duration of the prisoner’s life, may receive credit toward the service of the prisoner’s sentence ... at the end of the first year or term.”
Typically, prisoners who are granted time off or a reduction in their sentence only receive credit for up to 54 days per year of their sentence.
Brock Turner’s early release is difficult to justify, since he had only been serving time for three months — one month for each of the felony counts in his conviction last March. While other prisoners are judged on their behavior over the course of the year, Turner only had to comply with prison regulations for three months.
This all begs the question about what would have happened if Turner was not from a family with money. Or if his father was not so staunch in his support of his son as to say that all Brock was guilty of was “20 minutes of action.”
And even more so, Turner’s early release adds another urgent question mark behind the question: What do we do about campus sexual assault?
Because, despite all of the disdainful media coverage, the 7,000-word letter from the anonymous assault victim and the fact that he raped someone behind a dumpster, Turner is walking.
This sends a message to students and to people in general that, as long as you can pay a good lawyer, you can get away with sexually assaulting an unconscious woman with only three years of parole.
His release may have sunk the hearts of the advocates on campuses across the country fighting back against sexual assault, as it did mine.
But, in the face of this failure in our justice system, I encourage those of us fighting not to let our hearts sink but to use our anger relight our convictions.
The anonymous survivor of Turner’s sexual assault may not have seen justice in his sentence, but she can see justice in the way we react.
So, if you’re as frustrated at this decision as I am — fight back. Promote programs to assist rape survivors. Educate others about the meaning of consent. If you see something or hear something, intervene.
We can show Brock Turner what “good behavior” really is.
