Petition gets go-ahead in effort to recall judge in Stanford sexual assault

Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge Aaron Persky in San Francisco. Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge Aaron Persky in San Francisco. Photo: Jason Doiy, Associated Press Photo: Jason Doiy, Associated Press Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close Petition gets go-ahead in effort to recall judge in Stanford sexual assault 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

Foes of a Santa Clara County judge who gave a six-month jail sentence in a Stanford sexual assault case were granted the go-ahead Monday to resume collecting signatures for his possible recall, a court spokesman said.

Judge Kay Tsenin lifted a stay issued Aug. 11 that prevented the signature-gathering. Tsenin, a retired San Francisco judge sitting in Santa Clara County Superior Court, said she would issue a full ruling on the matter Thursday, said court spokesman Benjamin Rada.

Aaron Persky is the Santa Clara County Superior Court judge who set off national outrage for his sentencing of former Stanford University swimmer Brock Turner in his felony sexual assault case. Prosecutors had asked for a six-year prison term for the January 2015 assault, but Persky gave Turner a six-month jail sentence.

Persky said that he was following a probation-department recommendation and that the six-month sentence would have a “severe impact” on Turner. Critics said the judge has a history of leniency in sentencing male sex offenders and began the recall campaign.

Persky’s lawyers had argued that the recall petitions should be submitted to state officials, not county officials. Recall proponents called that effort an attempt to stall the campaign and said a swift ruling was essential if the recall were to qualify for the June 2018 ballot.

By law, recall proponents have 160 days to collect 58,634 valid signatures of registered voters. Persky, a former prosecutor, was appointed to the bench by then-Gov. Gray Davis in 2003.

Only four judges have been recalled in California history. The last was in 1932.

Stanford law Professor Michele Dauber, a leader of the recall campaign, had said that the suit to stop the signature gathering based on the office to which the signatures were to be delivered was “gamesmanship and shenanigans.”

“Obviously, we’re very happy and thankful the judge ruled in favor of Santa Clara County voters and their constitutional rights,” Dauber said shortly after Tsenin issued her ruling. “This upholds what we said — Persky filed a frivolous lawsuit in order to stall and delay.”

Elizabeth Pipkin, a lawyer for Persky’s campaign to stop the recall, said she was optimistic that Tsenin would reverse her order.

“We are hopeful the court will change its tentative ruling after considering our arguments,” she said. “The California Constitution provides protections for judges who are the targets of a recall campaign. These protections are vital to ensure an independent judiciary.”

The Aug. 11 order to halt the recall effort in the first place was issued by Marjorie Laird Carter, the retired Orange County judge who has since been removed from the case in a challenge by recall supporters.

Steve Rubenstein is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: srubenstein@sfchronicle.com