Indiana University Student Who Was Charged With Two Rapes, Spends Only One Day In Jail, Gets One Year Probation

In a case reminiscent of the Brock Turner rape case that received national attention due to the lenient sentence given to the 20-year-old Stanford student, another rich, white male has been given a slap on the wrist following being charged with two counts of rape. This time, the alleged rapist was an Indiana University student, who, after being charged in two separate rape cases that reportedly happened on Indiana University Bloomington campus, spent just one day in jail, and got one year probation after copping a plea deal.

Indiana University student John Enochs, 22, served only one day in jail after he was charged as the perpetrator in two separate rape cases during his tenure at IU Bloomington’s Kelley Business School, while a member of the Delta Tau Delta fraternity. The first rape charge came last year, when another student alleged that while attending an event at the Delta Tau Delta frat house on April 11, 2015, she had had a few too many drinks, and was searching for a bathroom. She reported to the Monroe County Sheriff’s Department that the next thing she remembered was waking up to a strange man she didn’t recognize having sex with her. According to the New York Times, she told the man “no” repeatedly, and begged him to get off of her, but he held her down, and continued to rape her, despite her protests.

Video evidence showed Enochs leading the victim to a room, and attempting to open the door, only to find it locked. He tried another door, which opened, and he ushered the victim inside. Twenty-four minutes later, the victim is seen leaving the room. Medical reports state that she suffered a laceration to her genitals, and that Enochs’ DNA was found on her.

While compiling evidence against Enoch for the April, 2015, case, prosecutors came across a previous police report citing John Enochs in another rape case that occurred in October of 2013. The victim in 2013 reported the rape to police, but ultimately decided not to press charges. When she heard about the second rape case, however, she agreed to cooperate with police.

Unfortunately, according to the Monroe County Prosecutor’s Office, neither case had sufficient evidence on their own to convict the Indiana University student of rape, and, according to law, each case would have to be heard by separate juries, with neither jury being allowed to know about the other case. It was this lack of sufficient evidence to support two rape convictions that led prosecutors to instead charge Enochs with one count of battery with moderate bodily injury — a felony, which the court whittled down to a misdemeanor — the Prosecutor’s Office said in a statement.

“This turn of events was frustrating for us as prosecutors, due to the fact that there were two complaints against the defendant. That fact is the reason we continued to pursue accountability on his part which led to this plea agreement. It should be noted that he entered a plea of guilty to Battery as a Level 6 Felony. The decision to enter it as a misdemeanor was within the Court’s discretion.”

Due to this lesser charge, Indiana University student John Enochs served only one day in jail — when he was initially arrested, before being released the following day on $20,000 bail — and will be on probation for a year, despite being the alleged offender in two separate rape cases.

Former IU student, John Enochs was given plea deal & won't spend a day in prison. Was charged in connex to 2 rapes. pic.twitter.com/r5ivMkLwz2

— James Gherardi (@JamesGherardi) June 27, 2016

Fox59 reports that the victim of the April 2015 rape has also filed a Title IX lawsuit against both Indiana University, and the Delta Tau Delta fraternity, alleging that both ignored the 2013 rape allegations against Enochs, and thus encouraged an environment of “illegal and dangerous activity, as well as sexual assault.” Court documents in the Title IX lawsuit state that Indiana University has the seventh highest number of reported sexual assaults and rape cases of all the universities across the country. Between January, 2008, and November, 2014, 712 sexual assaults were reported to Bloomington and Indiana University police departments.

Do you agree with the lenient sentence handed out to Indiana University student John Enochs, or should he have received more than one day in jail and a year probation for being the subject of two alleged rapes?

[Image via Monroe County Jail]