Last Updated May 8, 2018 2:07 PM EDT
SANTA CLARA COUNTY, Calif. — A California judge whose sentence for a former Stanford University swimmer in a sex assault case garnered national controversy is speaking to the media ahead of next month’s recall vote.
The effort to recall Santa Clara County Judge Aaron Persky is being closely watched for its national political implications. If it’s successful, Persky would be the first California judge recalled from office in 86 years after he sentenced then-sophomore Brock Turner to six months in jail in June 2016 for sexually assaulting a young woman.
The short jail sentence sparked national outrage months before the Me Too movement took off.
The case garnered national attention when BuzzFeed published the victim’s emotional account of the attack and its aftermath, which she read in court before Persky sentenced Turner. A jury had found Turner guilty of assaulting the woman while she was incapacitated by alcohol outside an on-campus fraternity house in January 2015.
Persky said he’s remained silent because judges should be accustomed to criticism of their rulings. But he said the recall effort “demands a response” because it threatens the rule of law.
He said judges often face criticism for ruling according to the law and not public opinion.
Persky said he got an email in his chambers after the Brock Turner sentencing that said, “Dear Judge Persky, how does it feel to be the most hated man in America?”
“I know firsthand what it’s like to be the subject of criticism, outrage, and negative attention,” he said.
He said the negative attention has “permeated my life for the last two years” and affected his work and family. Persky said he is at peace with the criticism, but feels a recall would have far-reaching implications on the judicial system.
He said the judicial recall, if successful, would be a “silent corrupting force” that would enter the minds of judges when they contemplate difficult decisions.
“We should give judges the courage to make those hard decisions,” he said.
He said judges should be allowed to give defendants due process without worrying about their jobs.
Persky wouldn’t answer specific questions about the Brock Turner case because it is on appeal. But he said ethics rules allow him to point to the transcripts of his comments at the sentencing, which are publicly available.
Persky dismissed allegations that he’s shown a pattern of bias in his rulings and said he stands by his decisions.
“I give due weight and consideration to every person that walks into the courtroom regardless of race, gender, ethnicity, that’s what we have to do,” Persky said.
He said California has a disciplinary system to investigate complaints against judges and a robust appellate process. He said judicial recalls should be reserved for misconduct by a judge or incompetence.
“Really what I’m asking voters to do is stop and think about the issue, about the implications of the recall,” he said.
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