A judge gave a few days active time and probation to Nolan Bruder, age 20-year-old, who raped his 16-year-old sister, going against the recommendations of the District Attorney and the Probation Department.
According to reports, Nolan Bruder pleaded guilty earlier this month to the charge of rape of an intoxicated person. In his confession, he allegedly told authorities that his sister had refused to have sex with him. He admitted to giving his sister high-potency marijuana known as ‘dabs’ to smoke, until she was so stoned and reached the point of no longer recognizing him as her brother
Judge William H. Follett sentenced Bruder to just three years, and then suspended all but 240 days of that. He then gave Bruder probation. Del Norte District Attorney, Dale P. Trigg said Judge Follett handed down the lenient sentence for a number of reasons.
For one, Follett said that the stigma of a rape conviction and the mandatory registration as a sex offender would serve as enough of a deterrent. Follett also noted that the victim removed her own clothes, was conscious during the ordeal, and doubted that a jury would find sufficient evidence to convict Bruder.
“I could not disagree more … The message that this sends to our community is that sexual predators who get their juvenile siblings stoned enough can have sex with them without any meaningful consequence. That is not the message I want to send to our community.”, Trigg said.
Deputy District Attorney Annmarie Padilla also argued for a stricter verdict, asking Judge Follett to follow the Probation Department’s recommendation of six years in prison. She also noted that the legislature had changed the law to make similar crimes ineligible for probation in the wake of the case of Brock Turner, the Stanford student who received a similarly light sentence for sexually assaulting an unconscious woman.
“Under this interpretation of the law, a perpetrator at a college party who chooses to forcibly rape a conscious victim will go to prison. However, a different perpetrator at the same party who chooses to watch and wait for a victim to pass out from intoxication before sexually assaulting her may get probation. Whether penetration is accomplished through physical aggression [force] or predatory behavior is a distinction without a difference. Both perpetrators seek prey that are vulnerable; disadvantaged by his/her capacity to resist.” Padilla said.
Unfortunately, Bruder’s crime happened before this change went into effect.
Source: Daily Mail