Convicted Rapist Gets Community Service, AL Community Outraged at Light Sentence
A man in Alabama was sentenced to several years of community service after being found guilty of three counts of rape for raping a neighbor.
Austin Clem, 25, will have to register as a convicted sex offender, but will not serve any time behind bars. However, if he should violate the terms of his probation he would face jail time.
Limestone County Circuit Judge Jimmy Woodroof Jr., sentenced Clem to a 20-year sentence for first degree rape and 10 years on each count of second-degree rape. All three sentences were split, meaning the defendant will serve two years in community corrections- the Alambama equivalent of community service. Clem will also have three years of supervised probation in addition to paying fines and restitution.
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"We thought justice was finally being served and although the system was very slow, it was not totally broken," the victim's father, Richard Andrews, told AL.com. "That feeling persisted until yesterday. We were floored to hear the judge hand down such a light sentence."
While the case has drawn outrage locally, it is also drawing parallels to a recent case in Montana after a teacher served only 30 days for raping one of his 14-year-old students.
Stacey Rambold, 54, was given the 30-day sentenced by Judge G. Todd Baugh even in light of the suicide of Cherice Moralez in 2010 at the age of 16.
The public and prosecutors had complained that the sentence was inappropriate and was far below the legal minimum penalty for such a crime, but after an appeal for re-sentencing was denied, Rambold was able to walk free.
Rambold's light sentence enraged the victim's family and the public at large. People demonstrated to show their ire and petitions were circulated, calling for Judge Baugh to resentence Rambold or step down from the bench. Baugh was also under fire for making inappropriate comments about the young victim, Cherice Moralez.
