Letters from teachers, classmates support Cory Batey
A defense lawyer for former Vanderbilt University football player Cory Batey says in court filings that prosecutors who are now challenging Batey's 15-year sentence are acting improperly.
The state wants a new sentencing hearing because they say 11 letters supporting Batey were not turned over to them before the sentence was handed down. Those letters, reviewed Wednesday by The Tennessean, came from people including teachers at Ensworth High School, where Batey went to school, family friends and former classmates.
"The Cory I know is a life worth rehabilitating to be a father and to perhaps over time be an agent of change in the life of others, " Kate McGlasson wrote in a July 11 letter. Ensworth’s website says McGlasson is a math teacher and dean of academic support. "I became an educator to model love, grace and commitment so to not write this letter would imply that only certain students deserve that respect. Cory and I believe in a bigger God that through forgiveness and compassion, change is possible."
The letters are from: two high-school friends of Batey's; three Ensworth teachers, two pastors and two parents whose children went to Ensworth with Batey. Two others did not write in their letters how they knew Batey.
Generally, the letters do not make excuses for Batey's actions and express sympathy for the woman who was raped. They describe Batey as a man of good character and a gifted athlete. They ask for leniency considering the shame brought on Batey's mother and that his young son will grow up without a father.
McGlasson writes that submitting the letter was a difficult decision balancing her personal feelings and professional obligations. Lenore White says in another letter that her son attended Ensworth with Batey, and she notes the impact the case had on her family.
"My son is also a student athlete, Ensworth graduate and a 19 year old black man (boy). Because of this case, I've had to have constant conversation with my son regarding using good judgement, not drinking and about being in the wrong place at the wrong time," she wrote.
Batey, 22, was found guilty in April of aggravated rape, aggravated sexual battery and other crimes for raping an unconscious woman in a teammate's dorm in June 2013.
Prosecutors have said Batey's son was conceived and born while Batey was pending trial in the rape case. Criminal Court Judge Monte Watkins in July sentenced Batey to the minimum term possible under law, 15 years.
READ MORE in The Tennessean's full coverage of the Vanderbilt rape case here.
In a response to the state's request for a new sentencing hearing, Batey's lawyer, Peter Strianse, says the state should follow procedure set in law and take the sentencing issue to Tennessee's appeals courts, not file motions with the judge who heard the case.
He also writes that the state was aware letters in support of Batey had been filed. He says Criminal Court Judge Monte Watkins made no errors in handing down the sentence.
"There is clearly sufficient evidence in the record to support this court's sentencing determination and to provide the state with notice that the defense was advancing mitigating factors, including the good character of the defendant and his potential for rehabilitation," Strianse's response reads.
The prosecutors' motion, released Tuesday, was seen by some as an attempt to appeal the sentence out of frustration it was the minimum allowed by law.
Since they were not able to contest the letters, prosecutors say there should be a new sentencing hearing possibly before a new judge.
Ed Yarbrough, a lawyer for the victim of the rape, said he could not comment, adding the district attorney "made the decision to do this" and "a longer sentence would please our client."
Three other men were charged in the case. Brandon Vandenburg, who was dating the woman at the time, is scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 30. The others are pending trial and plea negotiations are ongoing.
Reach Stacey Barchenger at 615-726-8968 or on Twitter @sbarchenger.