The Huffington Post reported California is shuttering a loophole that allowed Brocker Turner to only be sentenced to six months in jail after being convicted of sexual assault. The new law, which was signed into effect on Friday, will require mandatory prison sentences for anyone convicted of sexually assaulting or raping someone who does not give their consent.
When it was announced that Turner would only be serving six months, with three years of probation, for his convicted sexual assault, people were understandably outraged. There were confusion and anger over the case, with people questioning Judge Aaron Persky’s original decision to let Turner off with what some have compared to a slap on the wrist. This situation, on top of Bill Cosby’s recent allegations, had some state officials wanting to change the original law. California Governor Jerry Brown signed the new bill into law on Friday, which requires mandatory prison sentences for those convicted of sexually assaulting someone who was intoxicated, unconscious, or didn’t give their consent. Brown said he signed the bill into law to hopefully avoid situations like this from occurring again:
“As a general matter, I am opposed to adding more mandatory minimum sentences. Nevertheless, I am signing AB 2888, because I believe it brings a measure of parity to sentencing for criminal acts that are substantially similar.”
CNN reported the new law prevents judges from giving lenient sentences to those that commit penetrative sexual assault. Assemblymember Bill Dodd, who was one of the bill’s co-authors, said the new law is more than just giving offenders lengthier sentences:
“Rape is rape, and rapists like Brock Turner shouldn’t be let off with a slap on the wrist. Judge Persky’s ruling was unjustifiable and morally wrong, however, under current state law it was within his discretion. Current law actually incentivizes rapists to get their victims intoxicated before assaulting them. While we can’t go back and change what happened, we can make sure it never happens again.”
Turner was also ordered to register as a sex offender and many are still up in arms about this.
(Via The Huffington Post)