The East Bay Times is reporting that Judge Aaron Persky, who sparked outrage when he sentenced Stanford rapist Brock Turner to just six months in jail, has opted to recuse himself from the appeal proceedings of a man convicted of possessing child pornography.
Advertisement
He made a decision to recuse himself from the ruling, which would have come a year earlier than Chain’s probation officer had recommended, because he realized his impartiality had been called into question.
“This publicity has resulted in a personal family situation such that a person aware of the facts might reasonably entertain a doubt that the judge would be able to be impartial”, Persky wrote in his brief statement, which the district attorney’s office provided to the Palo Alto Weekly.
But Michele Dauber, a professor at Stanford Law who’s also one of the leading voices calling for Persky to be recalled, noted on Twitter that one section of the website has been quietly removed: one that states that alcohol “affects both sexual intent and aggression”.
Aaron Persky, the northern California judge who faced widespread criticisms for his sentencing of former Stanford swimmer Brock Turner, announced that he would be stepping down from the case of Robert Chain, a 48-year-old man who pleaded guilty to possessing child abuse images. Persky had sentenced Chain to four days in county jail, and had hinted that he might reduce the conviction to a misdemeanor.
“While on vacation earlier this month, my family and I were exposed to publicity surrounding this case, ” Persky said in a written ruling obtained by CNN.
Persky followed a recommendation by the county probation department to sentence Turner, the former Stanford swimmer, to six months in prison despite prosecutors seeking six years.
Another judge will make that decision in October.
Gary Goodman, a deputy public defender who opposes a recall, saw it quite differently.
During Chain’s sentencing a year ago, prosecutors didn’t object on the record.
“Judge Perksy’s record in child-pornography cases shows he’s biased when compared with every other judge in Santa Clara County”, she said, pointing to research the campaign conducted on sentencing outcomes for 14 similar felony possession of child-pornography cases in Santa Clara County that showed every other defendant received a sentence of six months.
WSAV reports that Persky said past year he’d be receptive to reducing Chain’s sentence if the man stayed sober.
Advertisement
He also attended regular therapy sessions and completed a yearlong sex offender management program. If the reduction were granted, it would have come a year earlier than a probation officer recommended.
