We’ve heard from his father, from his friend, from his victim and even from the men who apprehended him. But now we have a statement from the man at the centre of it all, convicted rapist Brock Turner.
The 20-year-old swimmer and Stanford University student was last week sentenced to six months behind bars for the rape of an unconscious woman outside a fraternity party, in a case that has attracted worldwide attention.
Today, The Guardian obtained the statement submitted by Turner to Judge Aaron Persky during Thursday’s hearing, in which he pleads for a probationary sentence.
“The thought of this is in my head every second of every day since this event has occurred,” Turner writes. “These ideas never leave my mind. During the day, I shake uncontrollably from the amount I torment myself by thinking about what has happened. I wish I had the ability to go back in time and never pick up a drink that night, let alone interact with [the victim].”
The reference to alcohol as a cause of the crime is one of many throughout the nearly 1000-word letter, and provides a disturbing echo of his father’s statement in which the campus culture of “drinking and promiscuity” are mentioned as the root of his son’s crime.
“I’ve been shattered by the party culture and risk taking behavior that I briefly experienced in my four months at school,” Brock Turner continues. “I’ve lost my chance to swim in the Olympics. I’ve lost my ability to obtain a Stanford degree. I’ve lost employment opportunity, my reputation and most of all, my life.”
Top Comments
His next sexual encounter should have been with " Big Bubba ", in a shower stall at state prison. He's a sneaky " little sissy boy ", who has been protected by immoral parenting. He will get his ... it will just take more time.
No consideration or remorse for the woman whose dignity and body he defiled ... pucker up Brock, you are now a tight end, who is soon to become a wide receiver.
Ohhhhh I hope to heck he appeals his conviction and gets a judge with a decent idea of how much time he should stay in prison for. V