Monthly Archives: September 2019

STANFORD. Brock Turner. And The News Black Out.

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STANFORD. Brock Turner. And The News Black Out.

It is my opinion that Brock Turner has been a pawn in a high stakes game for a #MeToo cause, and now it appears for significant monetary motivations as well. I believe it will become clear over the next many months that Brock Turner was wrongly convicted, and that he faced multiple due process injustices from the outset.

I realize these are bold statements to make but I come to these conclusions after:

  1. Researching court documents and reviewing facts,
  2. Following the trail of an endless harassment and mis-information campaign,
  3. Examining what Brock’s attorney did and did not do,
  4. Coming to a realization that the Santa Clara District Attorney’s office appears to be unethical and unprincipled,
  5. Reading about a pre-trial hearing in the judge’s chambers that set limits on what evidence could and couldn’t be heard, and learning how the 13th Motion in Limine took away Brock’s effective defense, to say nothing of the missing evidence, evidence that was withheld until the last minute, the undermining of Brock’s only expert witnesses and other actions and inactions before, during and after the trial.

Some surprising facts regarding Brock Turner, based on the evidence I have seen:

  • Emily Doe never said she was raped and there was no evidence whatsoever of rape. But the DA and prosecutor intentionally kept the rape charges pending for a full nine months, (DNA lab results  were finally disclosed nine months after the samples were collected) until just before the preliminary hearing, so the case could be characterized as a “rape case” and the media taglines ever since could (wrongfully) refer to it as “the Stanford rape case” and Brock as “the Stanford rapist.”
  • Brock’s DNA was not found on Emily Doe’s underwear nor on her.
  • Emily Doe says she has no memory. It increasingly appears she was in what medical authorities call a blackout state, and where a person in a blackout state appears to be functioning perfectly well to third parties (here, to Brock and the others at the party).
  • Legal authorities thought Brock should not have been charged. Having been charged, the legal standard was that he must have known, beyond any reasonable doubt, that Emily Doe was incapacitated. But in a blackout state, there would be no such appearance to Brock, or anyone else for that matter. Brock Turner’s BAC was a .17, twice the legal limit. He himself was near blackout, which raises the question:
  • Why did Turner’s attorney (Armstrong) fail to raise the Voluntary Intoxication Defense?
  • A Stanford law professor has been engaged in an ongoing false information campaign against Brock.
  • Santa Clara County District Attorney’s office distorted the case and may have engaged in other inappropriate actions.
  • There is a Santa Clara news media blackout.

There are two sides to every story. For years the public has only been privy to one side of the story: the accuser’s side. She was Emily Doe, recently revealed to be Chanel Miller as part of Ms. Miller’s pending book tour.  But there were always two people involved, Ms. Miller and Mr. Turner. Why aren’t we privy to Mr. Turner’s story? I think now is the time to take a deep dive into the untold story of a Stanford professor and the professor’s relationship with Ms. Miller and Ms. Miller’s family. And to look into the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office and the DA who wants to be the next State Attorney General.

My deep dive is only the beginning, but the evidence is starting to present a case showing that the Turner family was an unknowing pawn in a tangled political and #MeToo publicity storm, and now a plan to make a lot of money, all of which created a miscarriage of due process and injustice for a young 19-year old, Brock Turner.

In beginning my deep dive to understand,  my journey began by reading the public documents that Santa Clara County Superior Court released. And from there I unearthed a great amount of information that was purposely kept from the public. (Remember the Santa Clara news blackout.) I’ve only begun to piece together the injustices and unimaginable torment that has been following the Turner family since 2015.

But from the documents I am reading, I believe that politics, money, greed, celebrity, book deals, movie deals, victim status, egos, news black outs, and campaign career moves have been at play from the very beginning.  And a student new to Stanford on a scholarship from a middle-income family in Ohio named Brock Turner was a sacrificial lamb. And everyone at Stanford, in the Bay Area and nationwide stood back in silence, even when they knew the truth and the injustices that were taking place.

This is the first post in a series. These are my personal opinions.

-Alice True

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TITLE IX Professionals Warn Colleges To Be Wary of ‘Trauma-Informed’ Ideology

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TITLE IX Professionals Warn Colleges To Be Wary of ‘Trauma-Informed’ Ideology

An organization that represents Title IX officials has a surprising recommendation for its members: Stop relying on unproven scientific claims. The Association of Title IX Administrators issued a position statement last month on “Trauma-Informed Training and the Neurobiology of Trauma,” warning that training for the field is going in an “unhealthy direction.” Many ATIXA members are involved in sexual-misconduct proceedings on college campuses, and their training materials may direct them to show bias in favor of accusers, the statement explains.

Brett Sokolow admitted that “due process was not a top ‘radar screen’” for ATIXA when the organization started in 2011, the same year the Obama administration released its “Dear Colleague” letter on campus sexual-misconduct investigations. ATIXA believed that due process was important but “we assumed members were getting solid due process training content elsewhere.”

While noting its statement could be “controversial,” ATIXA gives credit to journalist Emily Yoffe for sounding the alarm about trauma-informed training in The Atlantic two years ago. She said popular theories about the “neurobiology of trauma” were “junk science,” and while ATIXA doesn’t completely agree with Yoffe, “her points needed to be made.”…The Center for Prosecutor Integrity published a rebuttal written by two behavioral neuroscientists, Sujeeta Bhatt of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, and Susan Brandon, formerly of Yale University’s psychology department.

“The impacts of trauma on memories and recall are widely variable,” the rebuttal reads: It is possible for trauma to cause vivid memories, no memories, distorted memories, or incorrect memories…we should avoid the use of information on the neurobiology of trauma also to substitute for showing empathy,” Brandon said. When neurobiology is used to explain inconsistencies and make “victims look more plausible,” she said, it creates another risk of bias: that investigators will expect “victims to exhibit certain symptoms and behaviors.”

thecollegefix-Lexi Lonasa

 

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2018: LETTER to Santa Clara County DA Regarding Potential Framing of Brock Turner

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2018: LETTER to Santa Clara County DA Regarding Potential Framing of Brock Turner

Excerpts from an open letter to Santa Clara County District Attorney

Mr. Rosen,

You are responsible for the misguided measure to recall Judge Persky. You seem more committed to ‘sending a message’ than facts and evidence of many cases…You recently, in a Guest Op-Ed, called Turner a “rapist” while his case is still on Appeal; yet, DNA evidence did not support your rape claim. There was reasonable doubt in this case… The hashtag campaign against Turner started on Feb. 2, 2015. You are largely to blame for this. And don’t be surprised if it turns out to be a civil rights violation. This case was never anything more than misdemeanor disorderly conduct, with alcohol counseling as a condition of probation.

…Our case review team consists of an Army Criminal Investigator (Corporal) and Criminology Major; a retired Santa Clara County Probation Officer (retired)with over 30 years of experience; an Emergency Room nurse; and Paralegal Admin. We have extensively studied and evaluated the Turner case in its entirety based on case documents released June 10, 2016. By all appearances, you brought this case for political reasons with insufficient evidence…

…Had YOU INSISTED DNA processing be made a priority in this case and public, negative DNA results would have been available before the case was filed, silencing any false claims of rape. Sexual assault may still have been on the table, perhaps not. It would have been he said/she said. Your failure to wait for DNA evidence before filing resulted in the Persky Recall. Your Deputy took eight months to drop the first two unfounded rape charges, providing the Dauber Machine ample time to publicly disseminate their false claims of “rape.” In the process, you destroyed a 19-year-old kid with no priors, no malice. This is cruelty. YOU TOTALLY MISHANDLED THIS case for your own political ends. You should be disbarred. Does the name Mike Nifong ring a bell?

All decent people strongly disapprove of and are rightly outraged by rape. Actual rape. This case was not actual evidenced rape, and you know it. This case could very well have been a drunken campus hookup gone wrong. You could have obtained DNA results almost immediately. It would not be until eight months later that your deputy dropped the first two charges. This is fundamental malpractice and again a potential civil rights violation. During those eight months the false and racist idea that Brock Turner was a “privileged white male” became a racist meme promoted by Dauber. Emily Doe told sheriffs that she had a history of blackout drunkenness, making Turner’s claim that she consented possible, a 50/50 chance. Probable Cause, yet sufficient Reasonable doubt…

Read the full letter: Open Letter to Jeff Rosen

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A CAMPAIGN of Disinformation. Putting it in Perspective. Brock Turner

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A CAMPAIGN of Disinformation. Putting it in Perspective. Brock Turner

There is a critical need for a dialog about campus sex and allegations of sexual assault, including when exacerbated by alcohol. But that dialog needs to include a more careful examination of the issues for everyone involved. For third parties to so viciously wage the type of disinformation campaign that has happened in the Brock Turner case works against such a dialog, and we would urge everyone who is part of the Stanford and Bay Area communities and elsewhere to examine what actually happened, who has been waging this campaign of disinformation and what that should teach all of us going forward.

This summary is a composite of efforts by a number of alumni and other volunteers who had no preconceived notions about the case when we first heard about it. We do not represent Turner or his family or speak on their behalf. We were, however, startled by what seemed to be a concerted and even malicious campaign against Turner as well as the judge in the case, Judge Aaron Persky. That led to our obtaining all fifteen volumes of the trial transcript, many of the trial exhibits and other related materials. The records we obtained are available in the public record and could have been reviewed by media outlets in advance of their publishing the articles that raised our initial concerns. We also made inquiries of people on various sides of the issues concerning campus drinking, Title IX, allegations of sexual assault and proper media practices

Based on our review and as discussed more fully below, we have concluded that the facts do not support a finding of guilty, and Turner is actually innocent as a matter of law. He should never have been prosecuted for let alone convicted of the crimes he was charged with.

The Turner case also is showing a process that is similar to what occurred in the Duke/Lacrosse, University of Virginia/Rolling Stone and Stanford/Joe Lonsdale matters. In the Turner case, the false narrative is being orchestrated by third parties who have done this before, and where their prior campaigns likewise have often proved to be false. Here, the campaign apparently was started before and during the trial and has continued ever since, including against Judge Persky as well as against Turner.

Read the full summary- Putting It in Perspective 

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TWO SETTLEMENTS, TWO COLLEGES: Tulane Settles And Yale Expunges Student’s Record.

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TWO SETTLEMENTS, TWO COLLEGES: Tulane Settles And Yale Expunges Student’s Record.

TULANE 

YALE. Following a months long legal battle with Daniel Tenreiro-Braschi ’19, who sued Yale after being disciplined for sexual misconduct, the University expunged his suspension from his academic record.

Although Tenreiro-Braschi and the University agreed to dismiss the lawsuit and bear their own costs in May 2018, the terms of their settlement were not disclosed to the public. Earlier this week, however, Tenreiro-Braschi sent the News a letter written by his residential college dean Nilakshi Parndigamage that reveals what may have been a part of the settlement. According to Tenreiro-Braschi, he received his diploma

yaledailynews-S. Cho & A. Steinkamp

14 Colleges that have settled    35 Documented TitleIX false accusations

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FEB. 2019 California Public Records Act Request

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FEB. 2019 California Public Records Act Request

In February 2019 a public request was made to the office of the county counsel , in the county of Santa Clara. A request is made for:

  1. All records and writings evidencing the county’s employment and hiring practices.
  2. All records and writings related to the county’s Whistleblower program.
  3. All records related to a DAO employee known as Sean Webby, including but not limited to Mr. Webby’s pre-employment records, interview records and employment records subject to production. This request includes a request for Mr. Webby’s job description, complaint history and communications that include coordination of Mr. Rosen’s schedule, press conferences, and any interactions with the press and the public related to Mr. Rosen’s political campaigns and the campaign of Judge Aaron Persky in 2016-2018. The request is for Mr. Webby’s resume
  4. All records of communications between Mr. Webby and Mr. Benjamin Rada, the PIO for the county courts.
  5. All communications Mr. Rosen has had with organizations and religious groups during the time period where he campaigned for DAO, and including communications, video and information related to any presentations, semi public presentations, made to any religious organizations located in Santa Clara County
  6. All records related to the planning and notice of any and all press conferences Mr. Rosen held, including a press conference held related to the changing of laws for cyberbullying and sexual assault from 2010 to present.
  7. All records related to Mr. Rosen’s travel out of country, and to San Quentin prison. This includes travel logs, expense records, emails, phone records, and communications.
  8. All records to and from any employee of the DAO and a person known as Michele Landis Dauber, and Ken Dauber. This includes social media connections, emails, phone records, letters, calendars, notes, invitations or communications.
  9. The formal calendars, with notes, vacation time, travel, press conferences, meetings and public appearances for Mr. Rosen for the years 2016, 2017, 2018, and 2019.
  10. All records evidencing the policies and procedures of the DAO and Victim Witness Services related to the privacy of victims. This includes policies about redaction of victim names from court file and information about internal conflicts of interest.
  11. All records evidencing memos, communications and writings as to how county employees, the DAO and VWS were informed that PIO Sean Webby was subject to a 2016 restraining order.
  12. All policies and procedures of the DAO and VWS for checking conflicts of interest.
  13. All invoices, costs and records related to the county investigation of and representation of Mr. Webby in 2016 and 2017 related to a restraining order requested by an individual known as Stephen Patrick White.

Public Records Request 

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OCR INVESTIGATES John Doe’s Complaint Against Williams College

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OCR INVESTIGATES John Doe’s Complaint Against Williams College

The Department of Education’s OCR is investigating Williams College in response to a complaint filed on Jan. 28, 2018, that alleges that the College discriminated against a male respondent in a sexual misconduct discipline case by treating him more harshly than a female respondent against whom he had also cross-filed a complaint. The complaint claims that the College has exhibited a pattern of anti-male discrimination in sexual misconduct discipline, referencing the College being sued in federal court. Doe writes that he was, “continually and systematically denied his civil rights in a joint-sexual assault case that Williams brought forth under the auspices of a Title IX investigation.”

The complaint also goes on to allege that administrators in the College’s Title IX discipline process had conflicts of interest that unfairly prejudiced Doe, and that Doe was often not granted accommodations that he requested, such as extra time to prepare for a disciplinary hearing.

Finally, the complaint alleges that the College’s Title IX hearing procedures are unfair. Many of these procedures may be affected by forthcoming Department of Education regulations on Title IX that Secretary Betsy Devos is expected to release soon. For example, Doe cites the lack of cross-examination and a live hearing as impediments to a fair process.

williamsrecord– Nicholas Goldrosen

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COLLEGE FALSE ACCUSATIONS Are Increasing. Cal State Fullerton and University of Kansas. 2 Schools 2 Females. 1 Arrest

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COLLEGE FALSE ACCUSATIONS Are Increasing. Cal State Fullerton and University of Kansas. 2 Schools 2 Females. 1 Arrest

False Accusation made at University of Kansas. A female student at the University of  Kansas told police that she had been raped the day before. She didn’t remember all the details because, she said, she was drunk. She told the officers she didn’t want to press charges but gave them access to her phone. After looking through her phone, police suspected she was not being truthful about the encounter and continued to investigate. Police allege the female had sex with her ex-boyfriend’s best friend to get back at him, but then feared news of the encounter would spread. Furthermore, the detective said the female student “decided to press charges after speaking with the university’s IOA office because she wanted to punish her on-again, off-again boyfriend for having a relationship with another woman at the same time as her,” The police determined she had lied and arrested her for falsely reporting a felony crime.  dailywire-Ashe Schow

False Accusation made at Cal State Fullerton. A female student who reported being raped in a Cal State Fullerton parking garage elevator was not attacked on campus. Police said the student had been on campus on Tuesday, when the alleged attack was reported to have occurred shortly after midnight, but investigators did not find anything in the surveillance footage consistent with the student’s report that it happened in a university elevator. “After further investigation, it was discovered that the reported incident did not occur at Cal State Fullerton,” Chief Aguirre said. When investigators found inconsistencies in the student’s  report, they interviewed her again and she told them that the rape did not happen on campus. ktla

Read False rape allegations: figuring the figures

 

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LAWSUIT: MALE CLEARED of Title IX Accusation Sues Maine’s University System For Not Protecting Him

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LAWSUIT: MALE CLEARED of Title IX Accusation Sues Maine’s University System For Not Protecting Him

A male student at the University of Maine at Farmington who was accused of sexual misconduct by a couple of female students is suing the university system, saying he was also the victim of sexual assault and that the school discriminated against him because of his gender. The lawsuit claims “gender inequities in the university’s implementation of Title IX and the creation of a hostile environment,” and also says the student was denied due process when he was suspended without a hearing in response to a new allegation that surfaced after he had been cleared by the university in an earlier case.

The suit says that in fall 2017, “John Doe” was dating a female student who reported to Farmington police that he sexually assaulted her. Police did not prosecute after determining the woman had falsely accused the male student because of guilt over having another boyfriend. Initially, the university’s Title IX investigator cleared the male student of sexual harassment and sexual assault accusations. When the woman appealed the finding, it went to a Student Conduct Code Committee, which reversed the investigator’s decision, and the male student was suspended. His lawsuit claims the committee, comprised of four women and one man, was biased against him.

Universities across the country are grappling with how to balance the rights of accusers in campus sexual assault cases with due process for the accused. In the last three months, class action lawsuits by accused students in California and Michigan are forcing officials in those states to reconsider the rights of students charged with misconduct.

pressherald-Rachel Ohm

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