After his statement to judge Aaron Persky was made public this week, the controversy which surrounded Brock Turner kicked up another few notches. From the fact that being convicted of 'sexual assault with intent to commit rape of an intoxicated and unconscious individual' was only punished by a six month jail term through to his father's appeal for leniency, Turner has been at the centre of quite a storm over the past couple of weeks.
When Turner's statement to the judge at the centre of the case was made public, it added fuel to an already blazing fire with the blaming of Stanford's 'party culture' for his actions coming in for particular criticism.
I’ve been shattered by the party culture and risk taking behavior that I briefly experienced in my four months at school. I’ve lost my chance to swim in the Olympics. I’ve lost my ability to obtain a Stanford degree. I’ve lost employment opportunity, my reputation and most of all, my life.
By all accounts an extremely talented athlete, Turner also made reference to his Olympic aspirations, something which he appeared to accept were at an end as a result of his actions. That loss of his 'chance to swim in the Olympics' is now a certainty after USA Swimming released a statement to USA Today confirming that, although he hasn't been a member of the organisation since 2014, Turner will never be eligible to rejoin USA Swimming, thus ruling him out of ever attending the US Olympic trials.
Brock Turner’s membership with USA Swimming expired at the end of the calendar year 2014...He was not a member at the time of his crime or since then. USA Swimming doesn’t have any jurisdiction over non-members.
Brock Turner is not a member of USA Swimming and, should he apply, he would not be eligible for membership. Had he been a member, he would be subject to the USA Swimming Code of Conduct. USA Swimming strictly prohibits and has zero tolerance for sexual misconduct, with firm Code of Conduct policies in place, and severe penalties, including a permanent ban of membership, for those who violate our Code of Conduct.
That news comes on the same day that a Facebook page, 'Brock Turner for Olympics 2016' hit the headlines amid increasing tension between sane thinking individuals and those who apparently look lightly upon sexual assault.
Facebook has however since taken down the page.
