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Stanford Student Group Petitions University After Brock Turner’s Sexual Assault Conviction: ‘They Can Do More’

Mollie Cahillane Articles, Politics, Uncategorized 0 Comment

In the wake of the high-profile sexual assault conviction of former student Brock Turner against an unconscious woman, the Stanford Association of Students for Sexual Assault Prevention, a student advocacy group, has launched a Change.org petition directed at Stanford that has gained almost 80,000 signatures.

The petition demands that Stanford immediately and publicly apologize to the survivor, offer accommodations including counseling to the survivor, increase the number of resources allocated for sexual assault prevention, introduce new requirements on sexual assault education, increase its counseling resources and administer a national, uniform “climate survey” regarding sexual violence in fraternities.

Last Thursday, Turner, a 20-year-old former Stanford University swimmer, was sentenced to six months in county jail. The sentence drew widespread criticism and gained national attention after the survivor shared an emotional letter directed at Turner, which she read in court after his sentencing. Prosecutors had asked for six years.

The petition states: “While this case, like many others, demonstrates the problems of the legal system and the prevalence of rape culture, there are still ways in which Stanford University can step up and support the survivor.”

Turner has admitted to the sexual contact but maintained it was consensual. In a statement to the judge, he cited peer pressure and campus drinking culture as factors in his behavior.

Stanford student Matthew Baiza, the co-author of the petition, tells PEOPLE, “The important thing is that we can always do more to have education efforts and create a climate on campus that supports survivors. If you read into what our petition says, we’re not saying that the university is doing anything wrong, but the university can always do more. All of this injustice has occurred, but the university can step up and show some more support.”

Currently, incoming freshmen must complete an online sexual assault, drug and alcohol educational program, but Baiza, 20, says this doesn’t go far enough.“It’s so easy for anybody to play all the videos, not watch it and just answer the questions at the end,” Baiza says. “We need to create this idea of active learning by continually engaging with the material and we need to find a way to more actively engage the community.”

Stanford Statement: ‘Stanford University Did Everything Within Its Power to Assure that Justice was Served’

Stanford released a statement on its website that read, in part, “Stanford University did everything within its power to assure that justice was served in this case, including an immediate police investigation and referral to the Santa Clara County District Attorney s Office for a successful prosecution.

“Stanford urges its students to do the right thing and intervene and we are proud of our students for stopping this incident. Many other student witnesses cooperated in the investigation. Once Stanford learned the identity of the young woman involved, the university reached out confidentially to offer her support and to tell her the steps we were taking.

It continued: “There has been a significant amount of misinformation circulating about Stanford s role. In this case, Stanford University, its students, its police and its staff members did everything they could,” the Stanford statement reads. “Stanford University takes the issue of sexual assault extremely seriously and has been a national leader in taking concrete steps to implement prevention programs, to train students on the importance of bystander intervention, to provide support to students who may experience sexual assault and to assure that cases are handled fairly and justly.”

Baiza is critical of the statement, saying, “The university sounded more reactive than proactive.”

He adds, “They’re trying to defend themselves instead of taking a step back and saying ‘We’re going to support the survivors, we’re going to make a change.’ They were responding by saying we have all these great things that we’re doing already. There’s a difference in those two types of messaging. It’s not just going to happen with one or two people, it’s not just going to happen with one or two student groups.”

Stanford Swimmer Blames Peer Pressure and Campus Drinking Culture for Sex Assault in Letter to Judge: ‘I’ve Lost My Chance to Swim in the Olympics’

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Last Thursday Brock Turner, a 20-year-old former Stanford University student, was sentenced to six months in county jail for sexually assaulting an unconscious woman behind a dumpster outside a fraternity party in January 2015.

The sentence drew widespread criticism and gained national attention after the survivor shared an emotional letter directed at Turner, which she read in court after his sentencing.

Turner was convicted of three felony counts of sexual assault. He has admitted to the sexual contact but maintained it was consensual.

A spokesperson from the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office tells PEOPLE: ‘We hope the worldwide discussion of this crime sentence and the victim s powerful letter has helped raise awareness about campus sexual assault.’

In a newly released statement to the judge, Turner blames alcohol and drinking culture for his actions, and focuses on the loss of his athletic scholarship and Olympic dreams.

Below are excerpts from the statement read at Turner’s sentencing hearing:

“It debilitates me to think that my actions have caused her emotional and physical stress that is completely unwarranted and unfair. The thought of this is in my head every second of every day since this event has occurred. 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 [redacted].”

The statement continues: “I can barely hold a conversation with someone without having my mind drift into thinking these thoughts. They torture me. I go to sleep every night having been crippled by these thoughts to the point of exhaustion. I wake up having dreamt of these horrific events that I have caused. I am completely consumed by my poor judgment and ill thought actions. There isn’t a second that has gone by where I haven’t regretted the course of events I took on January 17th/18th. My shell and core of who I am as a person is forever broken from this. I am a changed person.”

It continues: “At this point in my life, I never want to have a drop of alcohol again. I never want to attend a social gathering that involves alcohol or any situation where people make decisions based on the substances they have consumed. I never want to experience being in a position where it will have a negative impact on my life or someone else’s ever again. I’ve lost two jobs solely based on the reporting of my case.”

“I wish I never was good at swimming or had the opportunity to attend Stanford, so maybe the newspapers wouldn’t want to write stories about me,” it continues. “I know I can show people who were like me the dangers of assuming what college life can be like without thinking about the consequences one would potentially have to make if one were to make the same decisions that I made. I want to show that people’s lives can be destroyed by drinking and making poor decisions while doing so.

“One needs to recognize the influence that peer pressure and the attitude of having to fit in can have on someone. One decision has the potential to change your entire life. I know I can impact and change people s attitudes towards the culture surrounded by binge drinking and sexual promiscuity that protrudes through what people think is at the core of being a college student. I want to demolish the assumption that drinking and partying are what make up a college lifestyle.”

The statement continues: “I made a mistake, I drank too much, and my decisions hurt someone. But I never ever meant to intentionally hurt [redacted]. My poor decision making and excessive drinking hurt someone that night and I wish I could just take it all back.

The statement continues: “Before this happened, I never had any trouble with law enforcement and I plan on maintaining that. I’ve been shattered by the party culture and risk taking behavior that I briefly experienced in my four months at school. 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.

“I want to be a voice of reason in a time where people’s attitudes and preconceived notions about partying and drinking have already been established. I want to let young people now, as I did not, that things can go from fun to ruined in just one night.”

Originally published on People.com

Cincinnati Zoo Director Explains Why Staff Didn’t Tranquilize Harambe the Gorilla

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Cincinnati Zoo Director Thane Maynard defended the decision to shoot and kill 17-year-old gorilla Harambe after a 4-year-old boy fell 15 feet into the enclosure on Saturday.“The idea of waiting and shooting it with a hypodermic was not a good idea,” Maynard said at a press conference Monday. “That would have definitely created alarm in the male gorilla. When you dart an animal, anesthetic doesn t work in one second, it works over a period of a few minutes to 10 minutes. The risk was due to the power of that animal.”

The child climbed through a public barrier, falling into the Gorilla World exhibit’s moat. After he fell, two female gorillas were removed from the enclosure immediately, but Harambe remained close to the child. Video footage shows Harambe grabbing the boy and carrying him around the enclosure.

“He was acting erratically, he was disoriented,” Maynard said. “It’s due to his strength, that’s where the danger was.”

The family of the 4-year-old boy thanked the Zoo staff for making the decision to shoot the gorilla.

“We extend our heartfelt thanks for the quick action by the Cincinnati Zoo staff. We know that this was a very difficult decision for them and that they are grieving the loss of their gorilla,” the statement reads.

 A petition titled Justice for Harambe asking the Cincinnati Zoo, Hamilton County Child Protection Services and the Cincinnati Police Department to hold the parents responsible has gained close to 200,000 signatures.

However, Maynard said the Zoo will not be pressing charges against the family.

“Everybody should keep hold of their kids,” Maynard continued. “Here, the mall, the schoolyard. But the zoo is a safe place.”

The boy is “doing just fine” said the family in a statement. He was released from the hospital Saturday night.

A vigil for Harambe was held near the front entrance to the zoo on Monday afternoon. “This is an action in response of a sensless death,” wrote Anthony Seta, creator of the event on Facebook. “I know how we are all angry and upset over this situation. This demonstration is in memory of Harambe. This is not a protest against the zoo.”

People have been leaving flowers and notes in memory of Harambe around the gorilla statue at the entrance to Gorilla World, Maynard said.

Renowned primatologist Jane Goodall has extended her sympathies, according to Maynard.

Originally published on People.com

Baltimore Officer Found Not Guilty in Charges Stemming From Freddie Gray’s Death

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A Baltimore judge found Baltimore Police Officer Edward Nero not guilty of all charges stemming from the April, 2015 death of Baltimore resident Freddie Gray.

Nero, 30, had been charged with second-degree assault, reckless endangerment and two counts of misconduct in office.

Gray, 25, suffered severe spinal cord injuries after he was put into the back of a Baltimore police van and died from his injuries. His death sparked protests and rioting in Baltimore and has served as a rallying cry for the Black Lives Matter movement.

Shortly after Gray’s death, State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby charged six officers, three white and three black, on charges ranging from misconduct to second-degree murder. Nero was the second officer to face trial and pleaded not guilty. In December, Officer William G. Porter’s trial ended with a hung jury, after which they judge declared a mistrial.

Nero is suspended with pay from the police force, The Baltimore Sun reports.

During the trial, which lasted six days, prosecutors alleged that Gray’s arrest was tantamount to an assault because it was an improper, the Sun reports. Nero’s attorneys argued that the arrest was justified. They said it was the driver’s responsibility to buckle detainees into the van and that Nero hardly touched Gray.

Nero’s partner, Officer Garrett Miller, said that he had arrested Gray and not Nero, Reuters reports.

Originally published on People.com

Mr. T Reveals How That Photo of Nancy Reagan Sitting on His Lap Came to Be

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The A-Team star Mr. T and First Lady Nancy Reagan may have been an unusual friendship, but there was no denying the pair were close.

“We were wonderful,” Mr. T tells PEOPLE at a Fairfield Inn & Suites event. Mr. T and famed acrobat Nik Wallenda are helping the hotel recognize National Amazing Month throughout this month.

Mr. T, 63, partnered with the former first lady on her Just Say No campaign against drugs in 1983.

Mr. T in New York
BRAD BARKET/GETTY

 

“Word got out that Mr. T was going to the neighbors and talking to kids and telling them to stay in school, don’t do drugs, listen to your mother,” the star says. “That’s when [Reagan] was about to launch her Just Say No program, so they asked would I help them. I was so honored. I’m a kid from the ghetto, from the hood, from the other side of the tracks, and I get the opportunity to work with the First Family on such a powerful cause. I was honored, I’m still honored.”

A photo of Reagan sitting on Mr. T’s lap made headlines in 1983 when he was the White House Santa, handing out Mr. T dolls to guests.

“I gave Nancy [a doll] and then another. And then somebody said ‘Hey Nancy why don’t you sit on Santa’s lap?’ And I said ‘okay.’ Back then I was all, ‘can you believe that? She’s sitting on my lap, wow.’ I was honored.”

Reagan passed away from congestive heart failure in March at age 94. Mr. T was one of many celebrity guests who paid their respects at the funeral.

“It was touching,” he tells PEOPLE. “Don’t wait for someone to pass to tell them that you love them, or tell them what you think about them. Everybody says [Reagan] was great, but I wonder if they said it to her while she was living.”

Originally published on People.com

Katie Couric on Why She’s Passionate About Gun Control: ‘Everybody Agrees That Violence Needs to Be Reduced’

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Katie Couric is passionate about putting an end to gun violence.

At the premiere of her new documentary Under the Gun, the long-time journalist told reporters: “I’ve covered these mass shootings for many many, many years. Columbine, Virginia Tech, Sandy Hook. For me, Sandy Hook was a moment where the entire country said, ‘Something has to stop.’ ”

“After nothing got done following Sandy Hook, I just couldn’t understand how 90 percent of the population favored universal background checks, and yet our elected officials couldn’t get that done. And I wanted to understand why, and that’s why I made this film,” she adds.

Under the Gun follows the families impacted by mass shootings in Newton, Aurora, Isla Vista and Tucson, as well as families who experience daily gun violence in Chicago.

“We don’t really question people’s right to buy and own guns,” said Couric, 59. “We leave the Second Amendment as-is. But what we talk about is how can people buy and own guns responsibly. What measures can we put in place? This is not an anti-gun film, it’s an anti-gun violence film. And everybody agrees that violence needs to be reduced.”

The documentary also examines the power of the NRA and the difficulties politicians have in creating legislation.

Couric also emphasized the importance of recognizing daily gun violence.

“We wanted to make sure that we weren’t just addressing mass shootings,” Couric stated. “We studied the stream of gun violence that happens in cities across America on a daily basis. What I realized is these events and these deaths are often marginalized, minimized and neglected in the media.”

Director and producer Lee Daniels was also in attendance.

“My dad was a cop, and as a kid, I played with his gun,” he said. “I could have easily killed myself. I’ve had friends growing up in the projects die in my arms, three different moments in my life that I distinctly remember from gun violence. I hope Katie drives home the insanity of having guns.”

Under the Gun premieres May 15 at 8 p.m. ET on Epix.

Originally published on People.com

Utah Police Official Condemns BYU Honor Code in Wake of Sexual Assault Protests: ‘It Keeps Victims from Coming Forward’

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A prominent Provo, Utah, police official has spoken out to PEOPLE against Brigham Young University’s practice of opening “honor code” investigations into students who have reported being sexually assaulted, claiming the practice inhibits victims from coming forward.

Controversy over the practice erupted last month when 20-year-old student Madi Barney filed a Title IX complaint against the Provo school. Barney, who has agreed to be named in other media outlets, claimed that after she reported being allegedly sexually assaulted, the predominantly Mormon school barred her from registering for classes for the upcoming semester until it completes an investigation into whether she may have violated the school’s famously strict “honor code,” which bans premarital sex, alcohol and drugs.

“Obviously I don’t agree with the honor code. It is absolutely one of those things that are keeping victims from coming forward and getting the help that they need,” Kortney Hughes, Victim Services Coordinator of the Provo Police Department, tells PEOPLE.

Hughes says she would like to see an amnesty clause that would give immunity from honor code investigations to people who report sexual violence.

“We want people to feel safe reporting and we want them to access the resources that are available to them,” Hughes says.

“I’m definitely speaking out on behalf of the victims and all the victims that haven’t come forward,” she adds.

BYU has launched a review of the practice, according to a statement to PEOPLE by school spokesman Todd Hollingshead.

In his statement, Hollingshead writes, “The victim of a sexual assault will never be referred to the Honor Code Office for being a victim of sexual assault. A report of sexual assault would always be rererred to the BYU Title IX Office – not to the Honor Code office.”

Brigham Young University
RICK BOWMER/AP

Last week, dozens of BYU students, alumni and supporters gathered at the campus entrance to protest the policy.

Supporters of Barney submitted petition signatures from an online petition created by Barney calling for BYU to implement an immunity clause in the honor code. The petition has garnered nearly 113,000 signatures and reads, in part, “I was raped, and I waited four days to report because I was so terrified about my standing at BYU.”

Nasiru Seidu, 39, has been charged in Barney’s rape, a Provo police spokesperson tells PEOPLE. A spokesperson for the Utah County District Attorney’s office tells PEOPLE that Seidu hasn’t yet entered a plea and is scheduled for competency hearing. PEOPLE’s calls to Seidu’s attorney, Matthew Morrise, were not returned as of press time.

Originally published on People.com

New York Mom with Cancer Sees Son Wed in Emotional Hospital Wedding: ‘It Brought Us All Together’

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Catherine Holm of Long Island, New York, had been looking forward to attending her 24-year-old son’s destination wedding in Puerto Rico for months.

But on March 26, the 58-year-old grandmother received shocking news – she was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, and doctors informed her she could not travel for her son’s wedding.

But her devoted son wasn’t going to let anything stand in the way of his mother seeing him say his “I dos.”

“I was just so sick and I didn’t know what was happening to me. The oncologist came in and said, “Mrs. Holm, I think you have leukemia,’ ” Catherine tells PEOPLE of her diagnosis. “I was in shock. They moved me to Stony Brook University Hospital the day after Easter.”

When doctors told Catherine – who is currently awaiting a bone marrow transplant – that flying could compromise her immune system, the caring staff at the hospital joined forces with her son, Mark Holm Jr. and his fianc e, Joanna, to plan the perfect wedding.

Mark Holm Jr. and his wife Joanna
ANDREW HENRIQUES

“My daughter-in-law wanted to see if they could hold something there in the chapel, so I could be part of something,” Catherine says. “When everybody here heard about it, they were just willing to do whatever to make something happen here for us. It was so wonderful, it was so thoughtful of them. Nobody has ever done anything like that for us. It was very touching for me and my family.”

Stony Brook even provided a pastry chef for the wedding, Mark tells PEOPLE. And a fellow leukemia patient took care of all the decorations, while hospital staff set up another room for the reception.

“The hospital did everything,” Joanna tells PEOPLE. “They didn’t ask any questions. They took care of everything.”

Close family members gathered together at the hospital on April 18 for the emotional wedding ceremony.

Catherine Holm
ANDREW HENRIQUES

“It just brought us all together,” Catherine adds. “That’s all that mattered to me – that we were all together.”

The hospital wedding also gave Catherine the chance to wear the gorgeous dress she bought for the wedding.

“I was so excited – I was going to be able to see them have a ceremony and to wear my gown that I had picked out when I first started getting sick,” Catherine says. “I was happy that I was able to wear it and it wasn’t going to sit in a closet. It just reminded me of the beach – a beachy feel since we were going to be in Puerto Rico.”

Catherine says her favorite moment during the wedding was seeing her son “marry the love of his life” – and getting the chance to dance with him at the reception.

“It was very important to me. It was this country song and it just kept playing on and on,” Catherine says. “And all I did was cry.”

The couple, who have been together for six years, left for Puerto Rico a few days after their hospital wedding to wed for the second time in Puerto Rico on April 23.

“I told everybody, ‘We’re a family, you have to go down there and support them no matter what’s going on here,’ ” Catherine tells PEOPLE of encouraging the rest of her family to attend the wedding in Puerto Rico. “You have to make sure you go down there and be there with your brother and make sure everything goes a-okay.’ ”

Catherine Holm
ANDREW HENRIQUES

Catherine remains at Stony Brook, where she has just started her second round of chemotherapy. She plans to have a bone marrow transplant when she is in remission.

“I love my family,” Catherine shares. “That’s what keeps me going. It doesn’t even look like a hospital room – I just have all these pictures of my family and my friends. I have a wonderful support system.”

Originally published on People.com

Pretty Little Liars Actor Brandon Jones Arrested After Allegedly Pointing a Gun at Neighbor

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An actor with a recurring role on the hit television show Pretty Little Liars was arrested in March for allegedly pointing a gun at his neighbor during a dispute, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.

Brandon Williams Jones, 27, allegedly revealed a concealed handgun during an argument with a neighbor at his North Hills home on Oct. 30, 2015, according to prosecutors. On March 24, Jones allegedly brandished a knife and pointed a handgun at a neighbor during a different dispute, prosecutors said. Los Angeles police responded to the second incident, according to prosecutors.

Jones is most known for his recurring role as Andrew Campbell in Pretty Little Liars, a character fascinated with the girls known as the “Liars” for unknown reasons. Jones also has a recurring role in The Fosters, also a show on the Freeform network, which was formerly known as ABC Family.

Jones does not have a previous criminal record, according to the district attorney’s office.

Jones has been charged with one felony count of exhibiting a deadly weapon, one misdemeanor count of exhibiting a deadly weapon and one misdemeanor count of exhibiting a concealable firearm in public, according to prosecutors.

Jones will be arraigned today. He is currently out of custody and his bond was set for $50,000, according to Ricardo Santiago of the district attorney’s office.

Santiago did not have information about Jones’s lawyer or whether or not he has entered a plea.

He faces up to five years in prison if convicted, Santiago says.

Originally published on People.com

Grieving Saints Coach Sean Payton Advocates Tougher Gun Laws After Shooting of Former Star Will Smith: ‘I Hate Guns’

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Following Saturday’s fatal shooting of former New Orleans Saints star Will Smith, the team’s coach, Sean Payton, mourned Smith’s death and spoke out in support of gun control.

“I’m not an extreme liberal,” Payton said in an interview with USA Today. “I find myself leaning to the right on some issues. But on this issue, I can’t wrap my brain around it.”

“If this opinion in Louisiana is super unpopular, so be it.” Payton said.

He added, “I hate guns.”

Smith, a defensive end who played a key role in the Saints’ 2009 Super Bowl victory and made the Pro Bowl in 2006, was fatally shot following a fender bender in New Orleans’s Garden District. He was pronounced dead on the scene. His wife, Racquel, was also shot and taken to an area hospital for treatment, police said.

On Sunday morning, police announced the arrest of Cardell Hayes, 28, in connection with Smith’s death. Hayes allegedly shot Smith and Racquel after he rear-ended their vehicle with his Hummer. Smith and Hayes “exchanged words” and Hayes “produced a handgun and shot Smith multiple times,” police have alleged.

Hayes’s attorney, John Fuller, who has not returned PEOPLE’s request for comment, has said Hayes was “not the aggressor.”

Payton told USA Today“: “Two hundred years from now, they’re going to look back and say, ‘What was that madness about?’”

He added, “The idea that we need them to fend off intruders people are more apt to draw them [in other situations]. That’s some silly stuff we’re hanging on to.”

Payton spent Saturday evening participating in an auction for a charity event at the House of Blues. Returning home after midnight, he learned of Smith’s death, which occurred only about eight blocks from Payton’s home. He drove to the scene around 5:45 Sunday morning. He then spent several hours at the hospital where Racquel underwent surgery.

After returning home, Payton researched the gun used in Smith’s killing.

“It was a large caliber gun. A .45,” he said. “It was designed back during World War I. And this thing just stops people. It will kill someone within four or five seconds after they are struck. You bleed out. After the first shot [which struck Smith’s torso], he took three more in his back.”

“We could go online and get 10 of them, and have them shipped to our house tomorrow,” he added. “I don’t believe that was the intention when they allowed for the right for citizens to bear arms.”

Smith was killed just weeks before he was to join the Saints’ coaching staff as an intern.

“I don’t know how he felt about guns,” Payton said. “I know he loved this city. And I know he was going to be a heck of a coach. He had such a presence about him. Not only would he have made the transition to be a great defensive line coach, he had all the tools to become a head coach.

“We just don’t get to see those chapters. All the chapters before now were great. But it’s sad that we won’t see the next chapters.”

Originally published on People.com