Santa Clara County Judge, Aaron Persky, was cleared of misconduct for sentencing former Stanford University student to six months in jail for sexually assaulting an unconscious woman on campus. Because of this judgment, critics across the nation believed it was too lenient of a punishment for the student.

No evidence proved that Judge Persky displayed bias in his treatment of Brock Turner, per the California Commission on Judicial Performance, who investigates complaints of judicial misconduct. The panel received thousands of complaints demanding Persky be punished over the sentence given to Turner, which involved the 21-year-old to register as a sex offender.

Critics accused the judge of favoriting Turner because they both were Stanford athletes, or showing gender bias by failing to acknowledge that campus sexual assault is a serious matter. Others state that due to Turner's ability to afford a private attorney, he could receive a more lenient sentence

The commission concluded that there is no evidence of bias, abuse of authority, or other reasons that would warrant Judge Persky to receive disciplinary actions for judicial misconduct.

Prosecutors argued that Turner should have received six years. Yet, Persky said that he was following a recommendation from the local probation department and took into consideration Turner's clean criminal record and the effect the conviction would have on Turner's life.

Turner has been released from jail after serving three months and remains on probation for three years and is registered as a sex offender for life.

For more:

Washington Post: Judge Cleared of Misconduct in Brock Turner Case

New York Times: Outrage in Stanford Rape Case Over Dueling Statements