Supportive Email From Assistant DA To Judge Persky Surfaces
SAN JOSE (CBS SF) -- Just days before convicted rapist Brock Turner is to be released from jail, a sympathetic email has surfaced that the Assistant DA sent to the judge who gave the former Stanford swimmer a lenient sentence.
Earlier this summer, Santa Clara County District Attorney Jeff Rosen held a press conference sharply criticizing the light sentence Judge Aaron Persky handed down in the Brock Turner rape case. Prosecutor Alaleh Kianerci standing by his side.
"The judge gave the wrong sentence, but he had the legal right to give it," Rosen said at the press conference.
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Rosen called for a new law to toughen up sentencing in rape cases where the victim is unconscious, all while a tidal wave of backlash started forming against the judge.
However, KPIX 5 has now learned two weeks before that press conference, Kianerci sent an apologetic email to Judge Persky.
"Your honor, I am really sorry for any negativity or personal attacks you are enduring," the email read.
She goes on to say, "I disagreed with the sentence, but I have the utmost respect for you as a judge. You have always been fair to me personally, and it is a pleasure to appear before you."
The email brought up the question of whether there was there internal conflict in the Santa Clara County District Attorney's office.
The DA declined an on-camera interview, but in a written statement said, "The email reflects the Office's position on this matter. Our disagreement with Judge Persky was professional, not personal."
Meanwhile, Stanford Law Professor Michele Dauber, who is leading the charge to recall Judge Persky, is herself becoming a target.
40 law professors have signed a letter saying "naked political pressure of this kind risks undermining the very foundation of dispassionate, independent judgment."
Hastings College of Law Professor Hadar Aviram signed the letter.
"It's a dangerous proposition to push judges to be harsh to appease public opinion," explained Aviram,
Brock Turner is eligible for release at 12:01 a.m. this Friday. He's getting out after serving only half of his 6 month sentence. Jail security is preparing for possible big crowds of protesters.
