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Brock Turner, then 19, was arrested in 2015 after two fellow
students at the Northern California university saw him outside a
fraternity house on top of an unconscious woman.
He was convicted of sexual assault the following year and
sentenced to six months, a sentence criticized as too lenient by
political leaders, residents and social media users.
Turner was released early for good behavior after serving three
months. He had to register as a sex offender in his home state
of Ohio, after leaving Stanford.
In December, Turner appealed, asking for the conviction to be
overturned or a new trial, based on a lack of sufficient
evidence.
The Sixth District Court of Appeal in California ruled that the
"argument lacks merit" and that there was "substantial evidence"
to convict Turner, a court document showed.
The sentence Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge Aaron
Persky gave Turner stoked intense debate about rape on U.S.
college campuses. Voters recalled Persky in June because of the
sentence.
In response to the Turner case, California lawmakers passed
legislation to broaden the state's legal definition of rape and
mandate prison if the victim was unconscious.
(Reporting by Brendan O'Brien in Milwaukee)
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