Judge Aaron Persky, whose June 2016 sentencing of Stanford University swimmer Brock Turner sparked a national debate about sexual violence and judicial independence, was ousted from his seat on the Santa Clara County Superior Court by voters Tuesday evening.
With all precincts reporting Wednesday morning, the campaign to recall Persky earned 60 percent of Santa Clara County voters' approval. Opponents of the recall conceded late Tuesday that California's first recall of a judge in more than 80 years was effectively a done deal.
The recall effort was led by Stanford University Law School Professor Michele Dauber and spurred by Persky's decision to sentence Turner to six months in county jail after a jury found him guilty of sexually assaulting an unconscious and intoxicated young woman in January 2015.
Proponents of the recall argued throughout the campaign that Turner's sentence was part of a broader pattern of the judge showing deference to white and privileged defendants in cases involving violence against women.
Just after midnight on election night, Dauber said that the electorate voted against impunity for high-status perpetrators of sexual assault and domestic violence.
"We're in the middle of a historic moment, when women across all sectors of society are standing up and saying, 'Enough is enough,'" Dauber said. "And I think there is a sort of national reckoning with the fact that women aren't going to experience equality as long as we're subject to high rates of sexual violence and sexual harassment."
The recall effort drew opposition from dozens of judges and attorneys, many of whom argued that the recall would do damage to judicial independence and who disputed the assertion that Persky had demonstrated bias. Santa Clara County District Attorney Jeff Rosen, while publicly critical of the Turner sentence, opposed the recall.
Persky declined to discuss the Tuesday vote. While the anti-recall campaign did not immediately respond to requests for comment, retired Santa Clara County Judge LaDoris Cordell, who served as a spokesperson for Persky's retain campaign in recent months, conceded in an interview with KPIX Tuesday night that the anti-recall side was unlikely to close the gap.
"If indeed it has succeeded and a good judge has lost his job for doing his job, I think it's a very sad day for the judiciary in California," Cordell said.
Cordell also argued that the election should embolden those voters who opposed the recall and who understood "what the recall was all about."
"It was not about anything other than taking away judicial independence," she told KPIX.
Anger over the Turner sentencing -- which took place before a national reckoning on sexual violence, the #MeToo movement, swept the country -- was spurred in large part by the emotional 12-page statement read by the young woman Turner had assaulted.
"My damage was internal, unseen, I carry it with me," wrote the woman, known by the pseudonym Emily Doe (her name is being withheld to protect her privacy). "You took away my worth, my privacy, my energy, my time, my safety, my intimacy, my confidence, my own voice -- until today."
The case led to swift legislative change. Within months, Gov. Jerry Brown signed into law a bill, proposed by the Santa Clara County District Attorney's Office, that established a mandatory prison sentence of three to eight years for anyone convicted of sexually assaulting an unconscious or intoxicated person.
With Persky's recall, Assistant District Attorney Cindy Hendrickson is expected to take over his seat. Hendrickson had support from 69 percent of the voters, well above the 31 percent who voted for San Jose civil-rights attorney Angela Storey.
Hendrickson joined the department in 1995 as a deputy prosecutor and became assistant district attorney in 2011.
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Comments
Another Mountain View Neighborhood
on Jun 5, 2018 at 10:51 pm
on Jun 5, 2018 at 10:51 pm
A very sad day for Santa Clara County, and a damning condemnation of the critical thinking skills of the electorate.
Another Mountain View Neighborhood
on Jun 5, 2018 at 11:00 pm
on Jun 5, 2018 at 11:00 pm
Very happy that the judge was recalled. Happy days!!!!
Another Mountain View Neighborhood
on Jun 5, 2018 at 11:13 pm
on Jun 5, 2018 at 11:13 pm
"A very sad day for Santa Clara County, and a damning condemnation of the critical thinking skills of the electorate."
[Portion removed due to disrespectful comment or offensive language]
Another Mountain View Neighborhood
on Jun 5, 2018 at 11:36 pm
on Jun 5, 2018 at 11:36 pm
“Trump supporter, by chance?”
Far from it. The election of Trump and the Persky recall are two sides of the same coin. The age of the social media fomented mob gaining political power.
Old Mountain View
on Jun 6, 2018 at 1:42 am
on Jun 6, 2018 at 1:42 am
@ fyuvdwrnj
"The election of Trump and the Persky recall are two sides of the same coin. The age of the social media fomented mob gaining political power."
As opposed to the age of the propaganda/censored news swallowing fomented mob gaining political power. Two sides of the same coin indeed.
Another Mountain View Neighborhood
on Jun 6, 2018 at 5:45 am
on Jun 6, 2018 at 5:45 am
Don't stop! There's about 4 or 5 more EXACTLY LIKE HIM. When do we start the recall for them? Let's make this a regular election day thing!!!
Registered user
Rengstorff Park
on Jun 6, 2018 at 7:06 am
Registered user
on Jun 6, 2018 at 7:06 am
I guess judges need to check Twitter and Facebook before deciding sentencing now. The law doesn't matter, sentencing guidelines don't matter, see what Kim Kardashian and Donald Trump think about the matter first.
Another Mountain View Neighborhood
on Jun 6, 2018 at 8:32 am
on Jun 6, 2018 at 8:32 am
It still shows a sizable amount of residents are rape supporters.
I’m so tired of people that blame the victim and sympathize with the rapist. The bad judge is out, great, but it should have been 90-10. :(
Registered user
Rengstorff Park
on Jun 6, 2018 at 8:57 am
Registered user
on Jun 6, 2018 at 8:57 am
False, people who voted against the recall of a judge who delivered a fair verdict given the law and sentencing guidelines are not "rape supporters". [Portion removed due to disrespectful comment or offensive language]
Another Mountain View Neighborhood
on Jun 6, 2018 at 9:02 am
on Jun 6, 2018 at 9:02 am
[Post removed due to disrespectful comment or offensive language]
another community
on Jun 6, 2018 at 9:53 am
on Jun 6, 2018 at 9:53 am
@Yes but
You do know that there is a difference between sexual assault and rape, right? The victim in this case was not raped and the sentence handed down by the judge was appropriate. But the lynch mob (of which you are a part) keeps shouting rape. Just like Donald Trump. If you say lies enough times then people really will believe them.
Another Mountain View Neighborhood
on Jun 6, 2018 at 10:25 am
on Jun 6, 2018 at 10:25 am
The people have spoken *LOUDLY*. This wasn't even close, nearly a 20 point margin of victory in favor of the recall.
One indisputable benefit of this recall process was the unveiling of the true colors of various public officials such as Jeff Rosen.
In opposing the recall, Rosen has likely destroyed his future in higher political office (at the state or federal level) and may not even manage to be re-elected when his term is up.
Persky is done in public office. It is doubtful that he could get a teaching position, so it is probably private practice for him or an early retirement.
Well done, gentlemen! Hope you two have some nice quiet hobbies like gardening or reading.
Another Mountain View Neighborhood
on Jun 6, 2018 at 11:03 am
on Jun 6, 2018 at 11:03 am
"It still shows a sizable amount of residents are rape supporters."
Ladies and gentlemen, these are the kinds of critical thinking skills possessed by our electorate.
Registered user
Old Mountain View
on Jun 6, 2018 at 1:12 pm
Registered user
on Jun 6, 2018 at 1:12 pm
Looks like the low-information voters triumphed.
After the trial and sentencing, seen very widely as unjust and unfair to the victim, practically everyone wanted to wreak revenge on Judge Persky.
But then, complicating realities emerged. The law was changed (so similar sentencing wouldn't happen again anyway). The court's other judges explained that they all would have given the same sentence, under the guidelines then in place (so recalling Persky is futile, he's punished for the action any judge would have taken in that court). Demagogue Michelle Dauber (who has never argued in that court -- not licensed to practice law here) selected half a dozen Persky cases out of 2000, and proclaimed a "pattern of bias," a grossly absurd notion contradicted by every impartial review and by the court's other judges (LaDoris Cordell pointed out that any judge, including Cordell herself, could be misrepresented the same way by cherry-picking case examples; Cordell went further in an interview I heard, characterizing Dauber's assertions about Persky as going beyond distortions to sheer lies).
The more people learned, the more we realized how absurd it was to scapegoat Persky for a disappointing verdict that was effectively inevitable under the existing laws. Even the district attorney Rosen pointed that out. (And instead of "getting it," some people now want to condemn Rosen for telling the truth! Incredible.)
The more people learned, the more they rejected recalling Persky (a trend that the Daily Post chronicled: support for recall fell as the election neared). But some people still didn't Get It, and a few of them are at pains to demonstrate that fact in the comments here.
Another Mountain View Neighborhood
on Jun 6, 2018 at 1:23 pm
on Jun 6, 2018 at 1:23 pm
"The more people learned, the more they rejected recalling Persky (a trend that the Daily Post chronicled: support for recall fell as the election neared). But some people still didn't Get It, and a few of them are at pains to demonstrate that fact in the comments here."
And once again, the Big Lie lives on.
Heaven help any of you losers if your wife/significant other/daughter were to be treated the way Persky treated women in his courtroom.
Another Mountain View Neighborhood
on Jun 6, 2018 at 1:57 pm
on Jun 6, 2018 at 1:57 pm
In fact, I feel filthy.
another community
on Jun 6, 2018 at 2:44 pm
on Jun 6, 2018 at 2:44 pm
Mobs don't give a darn about factual information. They want to see blood. In case Dauber plans to run for public office she won't get my vote.
Another Mountain View Neighborhood
on Jun 6, 2018 at 3:06 pm
on Jun 6, 2018 at 3:06 pm
"Heaven help any of you losers if your wife/significant other/daughter were to be treated the way Persky treated women in his courtroom."
Give it a rest with the whole "Persky is a woman-hating monster" narrative. If my daughter had to appear in court, I'd be fine if it was in front of Judge Persky.
What this really illustrates about being in the courtroom is that we should be absolutely terrified by the prospect of being tried in front of a jury of our peers. Many, if not most, of my "peers" are easily manipulated ignoramuses, as this election illustrates.
Another Mountain View Neighborhood
on Jun 6, 2018 at 3:10 pm
on Jun 6, 2018 at 3:10 pm
"Give it a rest with the whole "Persky is a woman-hating monster" narrative. If my daughter had to appear in court, I'd be fine if it was in front of Judge Persky.
What this really illustrates about being in the courtroom is that we should be absolutely terrified by the prospect of being tried in front of a jury of our peers. Many, if not most, of my "peers" are easily manipulated ignoramuses, as this election illustrates."
[Portion removed due to disrespectful comment or offensive language]
Another Mountain View Neighborhood
on Jun 6, 2018 at 3:16 pm
on Jun 6, 2018 at 3:16 pm
"In case Dauber plans to run for public office she won't get my vote."
That does bring up a good point. Since we all know that recalling Persky won't actually solve any of the problems that people are upset about, what is the next move for Dauber[Portion removed due to disrespectful comment or offensive language]?
Another Mountain View Neighborhood
on Jun 6, 2018 at 3:18 pm
on Jun 6, 2018 at 3:18 pm
[Post removed due to disrespectful comment or offensive language]
Another Mountain View Neighborhood
on Jun 6, 2018 at 3:20 pm
on Jun 6, 2018 at 3:20 pm
"Then again, you are a Trumpster, so you have that going against you."
I already stated in this thread that I don't support Donald Trump. He is a total idiot.
Can we stay on topic, please? I know it's difficult for you to believe, but it is indeed possible for someone to simultaneously oppose Donald Trump and oppose the Persky recall.