Aaron Persky, the judge who ignited national outrage after handing convicted rapist ex-Stanford University swimmer Brock Turner a six-month sentence, has been barred from presiding over a new sexual assault case.
On June 16, Tuesday morning, Santa Clara County prosecutors charged Persky with a peremptory challenge, The Mercury News reported. The challenge effectively barred Persky from hearing over a rape case involving a sedated woman who was allegedly sexually assaulted by a Kaiser Permanente surgical nurse.
District Attorney Jeff Rosen, the lead prosecutor who filed the peremptory challenge, said they did so because they were "disappointed and puzzled" at Persky's decision to hand Turner a six-month sentence. Due to what he did, they have lost confidence in his ability to impartially preside over the case involving the nurse who sexually assaulted the sedated patient, he pointed out.
At the same time, Rosen also did not discount the possibility of having Persky removed from the bench. He said they will continue to monitor his handling of future cases and decide whether to let him stay or not, Raw Story reported.
Stacey Capps, the office's chief trial deputy, agreed and said Persky shouldn't handle another case involving another vulnerable victim. She added she has asked prosecutors to notify her should cases of a similar nature be assigned to Persky.
In the newest case, Cecil Webb-a 54-year-old surgical nurse-is facing charges of sexual battery for allegedly touching a sedated woman's genital and breasts at Kaiser Permanente's Santa Clara Medical Center in 2014.
Persky drew controversy after he gave Turner a six-month sentence for raping an unconscious woman on campus at Stanford University.
In the aftermath, he was accused of showing leniency on the swimmer due to his race and social standing. It also later emerged that Persky was also an alumnus of Stanford University himself.
