Father defends ex-Stanford swimmer with '20 minutes of action' comment

Social media is stirring about a letter by the father of ex-Oakwood and Stanford University swimmer Brock Turner prior to his son’s sentencing Thursday in a sexual assault case.

Dan Turner wrote in a letter requesting proabation instead of incarceration that his son wasn’t violent, referred to the sexual assault committed by his son as “20 minutes of action” and mentioned that his son no longer likes eating steaks. The letter was posted on Twitter by Stanford law professor Michelle Landis Dauber, who blasted it as offensive.

Brock Turner, 20, was sentenced Thursday to six months in jail in Palo Alto, California. He had faced up to 10 years in prison, but with good behavior, could be out in three months, the Mercury News reported. He also must register as a sex offender for the rest of his life and would have three years of probation following his release.

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The younger Turner’s sentencing was decried by many, including District Attorney Jeff Rosen, as too lenient, but Turner’s defense attorney said they plan to appeal.

He was convicted in March of assault with intent to commit rape of an intoxicated/unconscious person; penetration of an intoxicated person; and penetration of an unconscious person. In January 2015, two people saw Turner, then 19, assaulting his accuser behind a dumpster on Stanford’s campus after a fraternity party. Turner ran but witnesses stopped and held him until police arrived, according to a statement released by Rosen.

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