OAKWOOD, Ohio -- Emotions are running high over the six-month prison sentence handed down last week to a former star student-athlete convicted of sexually assaulting an unconscious woman in California.
The case against swimmer Brock Turner -- a student at Stanford University at the time of the assault -- has rankled people in the area where he grew up and observers across the country. Letters sent to a judge from Turner's family and friends have sparked outrage among critics who say the letters are attempting to shift blame from the 20-year-old man who won't take responsibility for his actions.
Many people who went to high school with Turner have supported him online, posting that he was a good kid and lamenting the fact that he now won't make it to the Olympics. Backlash against those comments and others have made some people in Oakwood, Ohio, nervous to speak publicly about Turner, his family or the town's reputation.
A childhood friend of Turner's and a high school guidance counselor later apologized for writing letters of support urging leniency in his case.
Mark Otto, 19, was a grade behind Turner at Oakwood High School. While the two weren't friends, they shared some classes.
"My school and my town are known for being quintessential and perfect and nothing bad ever happens, and there is no crime," said Otto, who now lives in New York.
But troubles with alcohol and drugs were just beneath the surface, Otto said.
California prosecutors cited several examples of Turner using hard drugs and alcohol in high school, and during his four months at Stanford. Text messages recovered from his cellphone showed Turner discussing using LSD and Ecstasy, and smoking marijuana and dabs of butane hash oil, known as "wax," according to court documents.
Court records indicate that Turner texted a friend, saying he did acid. His friend boasts about "candyflippin," which is slang for taking LSD and the drug Ecstasy together. "I gotta ... try that. I heard it's awesome," Turner responded.
Kate Skardon also was in several of Turner's high school classes. She said she was shocked by news of the crime.
"I never saw a side of him that wasn't sweet and kind and funny," she said. "It makes you wonder about the people around you that you trust, what they're capable of."
The median household income in the city of about 9,000 people is $100,724, more than double the average in Ohio. Per-capita income in the overwhelmingly white suburb is also far higher than the state rate, and fewer than 4 in every 100 people there live in poverty.
Many of the older, well-kept homes of brick, stucco and wood run above $250,000, and taxes are high.
The town's nickname of "The Dome" is a nod to the high school student newspaper of the same name, and to Oakwood's nature as an enclave.
But some, like Elizabeth Huelsman, said the city has been unfairly portrayed.
"We are a broader community than the papers would lead you to believe. And our opinions on this issue vary as much," said Huelsman, 54, who has lived in Oakwood for almost 16 years.
"Please don't judge everyone in Oakwood by one person's behavior," she said Thursday.
State records show the school as in a top-ranked district with a high graduation rate. Eight of every 10 teachers have master's degrees. The school's academic successes are displayed on banners around its campus.
Turner's parents moved from Oakwood to a neighboring suburb about a year ago.
Information for this article was contributed by Andrew Welsh-Huggins, Alina Hartounian and Olga R. Rodriguez of The Associated Press.
A Section on 06/12/2016