The publisher of a criminal justice textbook that lists Brock Turner‘s case as the literal definition of rape has heard the doubters and haters and responded by soundly ignoring them, thank you very much.
After a picture of the page featuring Turner’s photo was posted on Facebook by law student Hannah Kendall Shuman last week, there were a number of rumours circulating that the page was either fake or invalid.
Luckily, both Snopes and Buzzfeed debunked the fakery rumours – it’s totally real, as you can see here – and the publisher itself has made a statement clarifying the caption that says he raped an unconscious female college student.
There was some confusion over that bit, as he had been convicted of sexual assault, but not rape. As Sage Publishing says:
The statutory definitions of rape in the State of California (where Turner was convicted of three charges of felony sexual assault) differ from those of the FBI. Turner’s actions, as determined by the California jury, fit the standards for the FBI definition of rape, as well as certain other state definitions, but not the California definition as of the time of the final book manuscript. The authors and publisher will further clarify the differing definitions of rape in California compared to the FBI in future reprints of the book.
Conspicuously absent, of course, is any mention that the publisher or authors regret including the Stanford rapist as an example.
Professor Callie Marie Rennison of the University of Colorado Denver is one of the authors of the textbook, titled Criminal Justice, Second Edition, and explained her work on the book at her university last year:
Existing criminal justice books have focused on three elements: cops, courts and corrections. They speak little about victims, reflecting how they have effectively been in the shadows of our criminal justice system. In our book, victims are front and centre with equal emphasis as cops, courts and corrections. This is the way it should be.
It seems like fact that the page in question has received such a strong response is evidence that attitudes towards victims are changing, even if slowly.
If you or someone who know has experienced sexual assault or violence, you can access 24/7 counselling by calling 1800 RESPECT on 1800 737 732.
