Stanford bans liquor from parties after campus sexual assault case

Stanford University has banned liquor from campus parties with a new policy in response to growing concerns about sexual assault.

The university faced widespread scrutiny after former swimmer Brock Turner was convicted of, and sentenced to six months in prison for sexually assaulting an unconscious woman outside a fraternity. On Monday, it announced that “hard alcohol” and “shots” of liquor would be banned from all on-campus parties open to undergraduates.

Turner blamed his sexual assault on Stanford’s “party culture ... surrounded by binge drinking and sexual promiscuity”.

In its announcement, Stanford said the policy change is designed to “reduce the availability and accessibility of hard alcohol” and is part of a broader effort to “meaningfully change the campus culture around alcohol”.

However, critics are concerned that by banning liquor from public parties, the university is inadvertently encouraging students to binge drink in dorm rooms, making it more likely for victims to be sexually assaulted. Another concern is that students will drink much more heavily before parties, meaning that once they show up, there will be greater risks that someone might take advantage of them.