A 23-year-old woman who was sexually assaulted by swimmer Brock Turner on the campus of Stanford University revealed why she wants to remain anonymous.
Through her prosecutor, the survivor told KTVU:
“I remain anonymous, yes to protect my identity. But it is also a statement, that all of these people are fighting for someone they don’t know. That’s the beauty of it. I don’t need labels, categories, to prove I am worthy of respect, to prove that I should be listened to. I am coming out to you as simply a woman wanting to be heard. Yes there is plenty more I'd like to tell you about me. For now, I am every woman.”
Turner, then-19, sexually assaulted the woman after a party on campus on Jan. 17, 2015. Two PhD students who were riding their bikes found Turner assaulting the woman and intervened. They called the authorities and Turner was arrested that night.
A letter by the victim read in the trial was revealed last week.
In her statement she described how the assault left her emotionally battered.
“My independence, natural joy, gentleness, and steady lifestyle I had been enjoying became distorted beyond recognition. I became closed off, angry, self-deprecating, tired, irritable, empty,” she said.
The victim, who is not a Stanford student, but a resident of nearby Palo Alto, was so intoxicated that she did not wake up until hours after the attack.
“The next thing I remember I was in a gurney in a hallway. I had dried blood and bandages on the backs of my hands and elbow,” said the victim.
She also said that if she wouldn’t have been the victim, Turner would have assaulted somebody else.
“I was the wounded antelope of the herd, completely alone and vulnerable, physically unable to fend for myself, and he chose me,” she wrote.
“Sometimes I think, if I hadn’t gone, then this never would’ve happened. But then I realized, it would have happened, just to somebody else,” said the victim.
Santa Clara County Judge Aaron Persky, following the recommendation of the county’s probation department, sentenced Turner to six months in jail and three years probation on June 2. Persky cited Turner’s clean criminal record and the impact the conviction will have on his life. The former swimmer must register for life as a sex offender after a jury convicted him of three felony counts of assault and attempted rape.
The judge is facing backlash for the conviction, which many say is too light.
