Statement on Introduction to Criminal Justice: Systems, Diversity, and Change

The authors of Introduction to Criminal Justice: Systems, Diversity, and Change, 2nd Edition and SAGE Publishing have reviewed the text on rape associated with Brock Turner. 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.

As stated in the book, Turner was convicted of three counts of felony sexual assault under the California Penal Code. At the time Turner was charged and tried, none of these counts constituted the crime of rape, per the definitions then in effect. These three counts were: (1.) PC220(a)(1): assault with intent to commit felony; (2.) PC289(e): sexual penetration when the victim was intoxicated or anesthetized; and (3.) PC289(d): sexual penetration where the victim was unconscious of the nature of the act.  The initial felony complaint in Turner’s case included two counts of rape under the California Penal Code (PC261(a)(3); PC261(a)(4)), however both of these counts were dismissed prior to Turner’s trial. These sections of the California Penal Code have since been amended by the California legislature.