Austin Wilkerson to serve 2 years work release, 20 years probation 
 
 A former University of Colorado student convicted of raping a drunken woman he was pretending to care for was spared prison Wednesday as a Boulder judge sentenced him to jail work-release and probation. 
 
 Austin James Wilkerson, 22, was found guilty in May of sexually assaulting a helpless victim and unlawful sexual contact. 
 
 At Wednesday's hearing, District Judge Patrick Butler sentenced Wilkerson to 20 years to life on probation and 2 years in the Boulder County Jail on a program that will allow him to leave jail during the day to work or go to school. 
 
 He must also register as a sex offender. 
 
 Wilkerson was immediately taken into custody following the sentencing. 
 
 The sexual assault count, a Class 3 felony, carried a presumptive prison sentence of four to 12 years. But under Colorado law, the sex assault charge is subject to indeterminate sentencing, which means Wilkerson would not have been released from prison until he was deemed fit. 
 
 That was one of the reasons Butler decided not to levy a prison sentence, which prosecutors had sought. 
 
 "I've struggled, to be quite frank, with the idea of, 'Do I put him in prison?'" Butler said, adding that he spoke to people in the prison and jail system about what kind of treatment Wilkerson would receive. 
 
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 "I don't know that there is any great result for anybody," Butler said. "Mr. Wilkerson deserves to be punished, but I think we all need to find out whether he truly can or cannot be rehabilitated." 
 
 The victim, who was present at the hearing but left before the defense addressed the court, asked Butler to send Wilkerson to prison. 
 
 "Have as much mercy for the rapist as he did for me that night," she told the judge. 
 
 Afterward, Boulder District Attorney Stan Garnett said he thought the prosecutors in the case made a "very persuasive" argument for prison time, but said he respected Butler's decision. 
 
 "My office believes it's appropriate for the criminal justice system to send a strong message about the consequences of sexual assault," Garnett said. "But sentencing is hard. It's complex and a judge has to balance a lot of different factors. 
 
 "Judge Butler balanced those factors and reached a conclusion we disagreed with, but that is within the parameters of what is permitted by the law." 
 
 At the hearing, Wilkerson apologized to the victim, who spoke to the court, but had left the room before Wilkerson spoke. 
 
 "I sexually assaulted (the victim)," Wilkerson said. "No words I can say could ever take away the pain and fear that I have caused. Nothing I say can make it better, but I am so sorry." 
 
 Butler warned Wilkerson that he hoped he was right in his decision to issue a community-based sentence. 
 
 "If I or any other judge sees you on a probation violation, I have almost no doubt you are going to prison," Butler said. "So if you think in any way you are getting off lightly, you are not. Twenty years to life is a long time for somebody to mess up, and I hope you don't in any way take any of that lightly." 
 
 Wednesday's sentencing comes seven months after a different Boulder judge opted not to send a convicted rapist to prison for his crime. 
 
 In January, District Judge Judith LaBuda sentenced former Air Force cadet Daniel Ryerson to six months in the Boulder County Jail and 10 years to life on sex-offender intensive supervised probation. 
 
 Ryerson was convicted by a Boulder County jury in October of sexual assault on a victim incapable of appraising her condition. He was acquitted of sexual assault on a physically helpless victim and second-degree kidnapping. 
 
 LaBuda had the ability to sentence Ryerson to up to six years in prison, which could have turned into a life sentence under Colorado's indeterminate sentencing law. 
 
 'Arrogance, entitlement, privilege' 
 
 Prosecutors said Wilkerson sexually assaulted a female student March 15, 2014, after she had consumed too much alcohol, and he had told her friends he was going to take care of her. 
 
 At the time, Wilkerson was a CU student and a Ralphie handler for the Colorado football program. He is no longer a student at the school. 
 
 Butler also ordered that Wilkerson not have any contact with the CU campus while the victim was finishing school there, though Wilkerson's attorney said he has no plans to attempt to re-enroll at any point. 
 
 At the hearing, the victim spoke about the impact the rape — which occurred when she was a freshman — has had on her life. 
 
 "When I'm not having nightmares about the rape, retaliation or a retrial gone awry, I'm having panic attacks," she said. "Some days I can't even get out of bed." 
 
 At one point, she broke into sobs at the lectern. But when supporters approached her, she could be heard telling them, "No, I can do it," and continued. 
 
 While the pre-sentence report recommended Wilkerson receive probation and not prison time, Deputy District Attorney Caryn Datz had asked the judge for a prison sentence. 
 
 "There's an expectation out in the community that the criminal justice system protects its citizens," Datz said. "The community expects punishment for the crime of rape." 
 
 Datz said that while the probation department found Wilkerson remorseful, she said his actions at trial indicated otherwise. 
 
 "It was a five-day display of arrogance, entitlement, privilege and blatant disregard for the role of law," Datz said. "This defendant on the witness stand admitted he is willing to lie to gain an advantage to himself." 
 
 Butler, who was the trial judge, expressed concern about Wilkerson's testimony and echoed Datz's use of the word "entitled." 
 
 "Whether or not family and friends see that on a consistent daily basis, it's what I've at least noticed to be the theme of what I've been seeing and hearing," Butler said. "I do have some great concerns over, as I would describe it as, ways he tried to play the system." 
 
 Wilkerson's friends and family described him as a caring, thoughtful and smart man who made a horrible decision. Defense attorney Michael Cohen also said Wilkerson's remorse was genuine, and his testimony at trial was what he genuinely believed at the time. 
 
 "When he learned about the impact this had on her, the remorse I saw was genuine," Cohen said. 
 
 He also refuted the prosecution's assertion that his remorse was a show. 
 
 "If he was faking it or showing false remorse, this would come out," Cohen said. 
 
 'Worst of all is the victim blaming' 
 
 A recent survey showed 28 percent of female undergraduates at CU say they were sexually assaulted during their time on campus, something that the judge, prosecutors and Wilkerson brought up at the hearing. 
 
 "I'm sorry I have perpetrated the cycle of sexual assault on college campus," Wilkerson said. "My actions can never be undone." 
 
 In her statements to Butler, the victim said the blame she felt was unfairly put on her — from friends, a juror and even her own mother at times — was the hardest part of the case. 
 
 "Worst of all is the victim blaming," she said. "'If I hadn't been drunk, this wouldn't have happened. If I hadn't gotten separated, this wouldn't have happened.' Yet it was excusable for him to rape me because he was drunk?" 
 
 Datz said one of the tough parts of her job is preparing survivors for what they will face at trial. 
 
 "I had a heavy heart because I know I would have to explain to her what was ahead," Datz said. "That despite her courage, and telling her parents, her school, police coming to meet me, it wouldn't be enough. That she would have to come into a court and be totally exposed in a court full of strangers. I had to tell her she'll be accused of seeking attention or having some sort of unknown agenda, and that our community may dismiss this as a drunken college night. 
 
 "I hate to have these kinds of conversations with the bravest people I get to meet." 
 
 Added Datz, "I so admire this young woman. But her strength and courage doesn't lessen the impact this had on her. It's a process she found beyond embarrassing and shame-inducing. Her life is forever changed." 
 
 While the victim was not present when Butler read the sentence, the judge did tell her father that he admired her courage in reporting the rape and going through with a trial. 
 
 "That kind of strength is really admirable," Butler said. "Without ever forgetting this happened, I hope she is able to find hope for the future. She is clearly a bright, articulate young lady who, like everybody else, deserves a positive and hopeful future. I hope with the help and love of family and professionals, she is able to continue moving forward so that this event, where she was the victim, is not the only defining moment in her life." 
 
 Mitchell Byars: 303-473-1329, byarsm@dailycamera.com or twitter.com/mitchellbyars ||||| Austin Wilkerson avoids prison for sexual assault of intoxicated woman, in case that echoes Stanford assault that sparked debate about privilege and rape culture 
 
 A University of Colorado student convicted of sexually assaulting an intoxicated woman will not have to serve a prison sentence, a judge ruled on Wednesday with a decision that has sparked outrage from victims’ advocates and closely resembles the case of Stanford swimmer Brock Turner. 
 
 A jury convicted Austin James Wilkerson, 22, of sexually assaulting a “helpless” woman on 15 March 2014 when prosecutors say he “isolated and raped the half-conscious victim” after he had told his friends at a St Patrick’s Day celebration that he was going to take care of her. 
 
 'Inspired by other survivors’: campus rape victim demands to be heard Read more 
 
 Wilkerson – who eventually admitted that he “digitally and orally penetrated” the woman while he “wasn’t getting much of a response from her” – was potentially facing four to 12 years in state prison for the felony offense. 
 
 The law, however, gives judges discretion to issue lighter sentences, and in Boulder County court on Wednesday, district judge Patrick Butler ruled that the former student should not serve any time in state prison. Instead, he ordered Wilkerson to serve two years of so-called “work release” and 20 years to life on probation. 
 
 That means that Wilkerson, who was suspended from the public university, will be able to work or go to school during the day and will have to return to a county jail at night while he serves his sentence. 
 
 Facebook Twitter Pinterest Austin James Wilkerson. Photograph: Boulder Police 
 
 Prosecutors, who had urged the judge to send Wilkerson to prison, said they were disappointed with the decision. 
 
 “It does not satisfy our concerns about deterring one of the most prolific and impactful crimes of gender violence in our society,” Caryn Datz, Boulder county deputy district attorney, said in an interview. “In 2016, we still have a long way to go.” 
 
 On the day of the assault, Wilkerson made it appear as though he was trying to help the victim before he attacked her, according to prosecutors. 
 
 “He made certain his roommate saw him checking her pulse and temperature, and giving her water,” prosecutors wrote. After the assault of the woman, who was then a first-year student and is now 21 years old, “he sent a message to the victim’s friend who then thanked him for caring for the victim”. 
 
 Wilkerson later told a university investigator that he had made “repeated advances on the victim, but that she rebuffed him each time”, and that he felt “pissed off” and that she was a “fucking bitch”, according to prosecutors. 
 
 After initially denying the extent of the assault, he allegedly admitted to friends that he had “fingered a girl while passed out” and “let his hands wander”. Before the trial, he claimed to officials that the assault started consensually, but that she wasn’t very responsive while he penetrated her and ejaculated on her stomach. 
 
 Wilkerson, however, allegedly changed his story at trial, claiming that the victim was not inebriated and that she had engaged with him “passionately”, according to prosecutors. 
 
 “This defendant raped a helpless young woman ... tried to cover up his crime, and then repeatedly lied about what he did – including under oath,” prosecutors wrote. 
 
 The attack and the light sentencing echo the high-profile assault case at Stanford University in northern California, which launched an international debate about sexual violence on college campuses and rape culture in America. 
 
 Turner, who was convicted of multiple felonies, including assault with intent to rape an intoxicated woman, was sentenced to six months in county jail. Even though a jury determined that he had assaulted an unconscious woman by a dumpster after a fraternity party, Turner has continued to argue that the incident was consensual. 
 
 The Stanford victim’s powerful statement – which described the trauma of the trial and how painful it was to hear Turner blame the incident on alcohol and claim that she consented – quickly went viral in June. The judge who issued the lenient sentence is now facing an intense recall campaign. 
 
 Stanford sexual assault case: victim impact statement in full Read more 
 
 In court in Colorado, judge Butler said the sentencing decision was difficult for him, in comments similar to the remarks of Persky, who expressed sympathy for Turner. 
 
 “I’ve struggled, to be quite frank, with the idea of, ‘Do I put him in prison?’” Butler said, according to the local paper Daily Camera. “I don’t know that there is any great result for anybody. Mr Wilkerson deserves to be punished, but I think we all need to find out whether he truly can or cannot be rehabilitated.” 
 
 Unlike Turner, Wilkerson admitted to the attack in his statement before sentencing, saying, “I sexually assaulted (the victim) … No words I can say could ever take away the pain and fear that I have caused. Nothing I say can make it better, but I am so sorry.” 
 
 At the hearing, the victim talked about the consequences she suffered from the assault, according to the Daily Camera. 
 
 “When I’m not having nightmares about the rape, retaliation or a retrial gone awry, I’m having panic attacks,” she said. “Some days I can’t even get out of bed.” 
 
 
 
 In her plea for a prison sentence, she said: “Have as much mercy for the rapist as he did for me that night.” 
 
 After the hearing, Datz, the prosecutor said: “She’s an extraordinary individual. She is strong beyond words.” 
 
 In a sentencing memorandum, prosecutors cited the victim’s impact statement, which said her life was “ruined socially, psychologically, academically, and financially”. 
 
 Prosecutors wrote to the judge before his decision: “She does not call upon the Court for revenge or to cause the defendant suffering. She calls upon the Court for justice, which comes in the form of real and meaningful punishment for the conduct that the defendant chose and that caused her irreparable harm.” 
 
 The district attorney’s office also noted that at the university, which is the largest in Colorado, serves 13,000 women, and that 28% of them have reported being sexually assaulted during college. 
 
 Like the Turner case, Wilkerson’s supporters submitted letters on his behalf urging a light sentence. One said: “The most traumatic incident that Austin has faced is this sexual assault case.” 
 
 Lisa Saccomano, another deputy district attorney, lamented that privileged university students continue to avoid serious punishment. 
 
 “These young, college-age offenders who perpetrate rape on campus are getting some sort of privileged discount … compared to other violent offenders,” she said in an interview. 
 
 Saccomano said she had hoped the national attention surrounding sexual assault might have encouraged the judge to issue a more appropriate sentence. 
 
 “We’re not entirely surprised, but we’re certainly disappointed.” 
 
 Wilkerson’s attorney did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Wednesday.
– A rape case in Colorado has strong echoes of the Brock Turner case at Stanford in the defendant's behavior, the victim's powerful statement—and the controversial light sentence. Former University of Colorado student Austin James Wilkerson, 22, was spared a sentence in state prison Wednesday after he was found guilty of sexually assaulting an intoxicated female student after a St. Patrick's Day party in 2014, the Guardian reports. Instead, Wilkerson—who told the freshman student's friends that he was going to look after her—will be on probation for 20 years to life and will serve two years in the county jail under a work-release program that will allow him to leave jail for school or work every day. Prosecutors—who said Wilkerson "raped a helpless young woman after duping the people around her into believing he was going to care for her"—wanted prison, but the judge used his discretion to give him a sentence lighter than the four to 12 years in state prison the charge usually carries, the Daily Camera reports. His victim told the court that she still suffers from nightmares and panic attacks. "Worst of all is the victim blaming," she said. "'If I hadn't been drunk, this wouldn't have happened. If I hadn't gotten separated, this wouldn't have happened.' Yet it was excusable for him to rape me because he was drunk?" She implored the the judge to "have as much mercy for the rapist as he did for me that night." (Read the statement by the victim in the Brock Turner case here.)