Brock Turner mugshot appears beside definition of 'rape' in law textbook

FILE - This January 2015 file booking photo released by the Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office shows Brock Turner. The former Stanford University swimmer convicted of sexually assaulting an unconscious woman is poised to leave jail Friday, Sept. 2, 2016, after serving half a six-month sentence that critics denounced as too lenient. (Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office via AP, File) less FILE - This January 2015 file booking photo released by the Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office shows Brock Turner. The former Stanford University swimmer convicted of sexually assaulting an unconscious woman ... more Photo: Uncredited, Associated Press Photo: Uncredited, Associated Press Image 1 of / 23 Caption Close Brock Turner mugshot appears beside definition of 'rape' in law textbook 1 / 23 Back to Gallery

The mugshot of Brock Turner, a former Stanford University swimmer convicted of sexual assault in 2016, appears in a college textbook beside a definition of "rape."

Washington State University student Hannah Shum stumbled upon the mugshot while completing homework for her Criminal Justice 101 class. The criminal justice major posted a photo of the textbook page on Facebook, and the image quickly went viral.

He may have been able to get out of prison time but in my Criminal Justice 101 textbook, Brock Turner is the definition... Posted by Hannah Kendall Shuman on Thursday, September 7, 2017

The mugshot is featured on page 20 of "Introduction to Criminal Justice: Systems, Diversity, and Change" (Sage Publications), according to online texts published on Google Books and Amazon.

The caption beneath the mugshot reads:

"Brock Turner, a Stanford student who raped and assaulted an unconscious female college student behind a dumpster at a fraternity party, was recently released from jail after serving only three months. Some are shocked at how short this sentence is. Others who are more familiar with the way sexual violence has been handled in the criminal justice system are shocked he was found guilty and served any time at all. What do you think?"

The authors — University of Colorado law professors Callie Marie Rennison and Mary Dodge — include a definition of rape below the caption.

On Thursday, the authors and publisher released a joint statement: "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."

Turner, who faced up to 10 years in prison after his conviction in Santa Clara County Superior Court of three counts of sexual assault, served three months of a six-month sentence in Santa Clara County jail. A petition for the recall of Turner's sentencing judge, Aaron Persky, began circulating shortly after his ruling.

Shum is pleased her textbook photo went viral, calling it a "little bit of justice served."

"It seemed like it had nearly disappeared and America just wanted to forget it," she said of the Turner case. "I'm super glad [the textbook authors aren't] letting that happen."

The San Francisco Chronicle's Peter Fimrite contributed to this report.

Read Michelle Robertson’s latest stories and send her news tips at mrobertson@sfchronicle.com.