Powerful letter from a rape survivor to her attacker

[NotMyRealName2015]

Couldn't se another thread about this, apologies if it's duplicated, but I had to share this amazing statement written by a woman to read to her rapist in court.

Serious trigger warning- link contains upsetting content.

www.buzzfeed.com/katiejmbaker/heres-the-powerful-letter-the-stanford-victim-read-to-her-ra

I thought her statement was incredibly articuate and explains the effects of rape and rape culture so well. I can only imagine how angry she must feel, (my blood was boiling reading the attacker's defence statements-"culture of drinking and sexual promiscuity" ffs) so the fact that she was able to address him so eloquently is bloody incredible.

The last 3 paragraphs had me in tears as well. To that lady, wherever you are, thank you. You are amazing and we are all with you too

There's a line in Terry Pratchett's Night Watch book, something to the effect of:

"I've had 5 years' good behaviour"

"No, you've had five years of Not Getting Caught."

That such a blinkered asshole can create such an entitled rapist is completely believable.

20 minutes in 20 years?!?!? I am spitting nails over here.

^"Only men have to be responsible when drunk' The implication being that raping someone is actually just a bit irresponsible i suppose angryangry
Bookm^

The fact that I have frequently been drunk and yet managed to never stick any of my appendages unwanted in another person goes straight over their head.

I've just read the letter from his dad.

It's powerful too in its own way. I understand that Brock is his child, but I (and I recoil from thinking about it) don't think I would be able to support my son like that if he did something as terrible as Brock did. His dad doesn't seem to even acknowledge the horror of what happened to the victim (and I feel terrible knowing his name, but not being able to acknowledge her, whilst simultaneously wishing her every piece of luck in staying anonymous).

Brocks life should be terribly impacted, hers was, and he did it. No part of me would ever think that what was going on there was even slightly acceptable. She says in her letter that one of the men who discovered her was in tears at the sight, being comforted by a police officer when she was rescued, I doubt he's going to forget it and be quite as happy go lucky ever again either.

Brock's actions are unforgivable. They have damaged his victim, her family and friends, the people who found her, and every police officer, health care and legal professional (or intern), and Brock should get sympathy because he now has to deal with the pitifully small reaction to that.

I missed a question mark or some indication of disgust at the end of my last paragraph - I meant that his dad was suggesting that Brock should get sympathy, but I couldn't see why, and didn't have a single ounce of it in me for him.

The denial in the father's letter is screaming out - it's really no wonder that rapist cannot accept any responsibility for what he did when his own father refers to the rape his own son carried out as 'sexual promiscuity'. And the judge, probation officer, the defence attorney all going to extreme lengths to validate both the rapist & his father's fucked up views of the limit of his responsibility for what he did & how that affected his victim - it disgusts me & yet it's depressingly unsurprising given the rape culture we all live in.

That is such a powerful piece of writing from her. I hope it brings her a small measure of peace. I do wonder how it might have turned out differently if (a.) he had not been caught red-handed by two witnesses, and (b.) he was not a white athletics scholarship student.

It has similarities with the Ched Evans case. If there are any positives that we can take from these awful events, it is that in both cases the police/ authorities decided that the perpetrator must be prosecuted, and that both were found guilty. It won't undo the damage inflicted to the victims, but perhaps this is a start of a widespread change in attitudes to these crimes.

I have a question for anyone with legal expertise. Is there a better way of bringing these crimes to trial? Are there any legal systems in any democracies where something other than adversarial lawyers are used? Do they work?

I read this in the Guardian today and came on here straightaway to see if there was already a thread about this. I'm so angry about the fucking victim blaming and pp justifying and excusing this monster's actions. It's so bloody predictable and so so wrong. Makes me want to scream. This could happen to any of us or our daughters. What kind of protection is there for women if this is the punishment for an appalling, life changing assault?

And his father? He should be ashamed, not minimising, almost dismissing what his son has done.

I'm just appalled. But not surprised, sadly.

This woman has reached into the very depths of her soul to write this letter. I can only hope it helps her find some peace and healing and that she has good support around her.

Of course people are going to campaign that after a little rape sentence he should be able to compete in the olympics.

Oscar Pistorius.

Not a mention about his son's victim, in the dad's statement to the court.

Mention of being intoxicated, and 'sexual promiscuity'. No mention of rape.

Is it any wonder these young men think they can get away with, when they've got parents who enable them to do so, because they refuse to accept their beloved sons have done anything wrong?

I read this today, too.

When I read his father's piece, it made me realise that we shouldn't have expected his son to turn out differently. And you know what, he could've written about his son and how this was out of character and they were all so ashamed and sorry for the poor girl and hoped she'd recover soon. The guy could have apologised and acknowledged what he'd done was really wrong. The woman said that was all she wanted. And now, it'll take her so much longer to recover simply because of that stupid twat of a judge and a father and son who will not accept blame. Disgraceful.

Looks like the apple doesn't fall far from the tree with Brock. Inevitable that he would grow up to be a rapist with a role model like that.

His father's response told me everything about why this young man feels he did nothing wrong. He has evidently been brought up to regard women as objects to use and abuse as he sees fit. If they are drunk then they are fair game it seems.

"Twenty minutes of action"...he actually wrote that down.

My only comfort is that many ordinary decent men are expressing outrage at the words and actions of both this young man AND his father.

grim in this case he was unanimously found guilty by the jury so I think the adversarial system worked ok. The issue is with the complete fuckwit of a judge who thinks 6 months is an acceptable sentence for this crime. In the UK the sentencing could (and I hope would) be appealed for being too lenient. I'm not sure of the situation in the states.
It's a total travesty of justice that he got 6 months sentence out of a possible 14 years, when he has shown no remorse whatsoever and in fact insists that it was drunken promiscuity.

Agreed, Felas. His lack of remorse is astounding. Given that this is the USA, how does pleading guilty affect any possible sentence? In some cases in the UK I think it can help reduce the sentence, given that you are not putting the victim on the stand and forcing them to relive their ordeal. I don't know how or if that applies in America.

I wish there was a way of sending this brave young woman our support. I hope she knows how much we empathise with her and how she's not alone

The comments under the Buzzfeed article are in the main v supportive, which is v heartening to see. Pp are not only angry at the perpetrator but also the judge who is up for Re election soon...

Forgot link!

www.buzzfeed.com/katiejmbaker/heres-the-powerful-letter-the-stanford-victim-read-to-her-ra?utm_term=.xnzW4lOzM#.edjNgm9Kx

If Brock Allen Turner were not a former Stanford athlete, I'm certain he would be facing serious prison time.

Judge Aaron Persky is not only a Stanford alumni, but he used to be part of the athletics program (both as a student AND coach). He played lacrosse at Stanford during his time there, and was captain of the team for a season, and then later on was an assistant lacrosse coach.

According to reports, it is also not the first time he has shown apparent leniency to Stanford athletes who have appeared before him.

Just like you see with fraternities, athletic alumni tend to look out for their own.

Destinysdaughter - he's running unopposed, so he isn't even on the ballot, and thus he'll be reelected by default.

Anyone can sign the petition, but only residents of Santa Clara County can apply to have Persky recalled, with the assistance of a local attorney. Such a campaign has now been launched.

Given that this is the USA, how does pleading guilty affect any possible sentence?

Pleading guilty is usually part of a plea deal with the prosecutor; the incentive is usually a more lenient sentence and often involves pleading to a lesser crime.

I am sadly not surprised at his pathetic sentence, not surprised at the campaign for Rio, not surprised at rape being called twenty minutes of action.
Rape is not a sex crime. It is not a man overcome with sexual desire he cannot help himself. It is about power, control and the degradation of women. Drinking culture is the mask rapists hide behind.

God I've still got goosebumps and I read it ten minutes ago. I'm going to have DS & DD read this when they are old enough. There just isn't words for how powerful it is.

The whole thing has been very carefully stage managed. The only pictures of the rapist available before his trial were his yearbook and stills from court. His mugshot casts him in a very different light.

Jezebel link (sorry)

The USA really needs to get rid of judges like Persky, possibly by not electing them any more. The whole narrative of this trial has been about the privileged white kid, star athlete, trying to get away with a crime he was caught red-handed doing. Can you imagine if Brock had been black or Hispanic? Poor?

The adversarial system is the best possible one right now but it is far too easy to manipulate it if you have money or position or connections and that isn't solely an American problem either. Rich white boys in the UK get away with murder too. It makes a mockery of our so-called rights to a fair trial. I don't know what the answer is, maybe all defendants should have a lawyer assigned to them in the same way as the CPS/DA doe, regardless of personal wealth.

I've signed this. Doubt it will achieve anything, but had to do something to manifest my disgust.
www.change.org/p/california-state-house-recall-judge-aaron-persky?recruiter=58868254&utm_source=petitions_share&utm_medium=copylink

Totally agree, PalmerViolet. In every case of a rape by any ethnic minority in the US, the press leads with a mug shot. Not so here, where the Santa Clara police have not yet released the mug shot from his arrest, though the woman's description of what she saw on her body gives me a vivid picture of what a brute might have carried out those actions.

For me, the lasting impression from her letter is of her strength, and how much of that is contained in the relationship with her younger sister, how they will both carry this nightmare for the rest of their lives. Having been through similar, this resonates totally.

Here's another link to the mug shot cover up in Think Progress

A Stanford law professor (woman and friend of victim's family) is leading the campaign to have the sentencing revised.