“I’m happy that the judge was removed and he can’t hurt anybody else but it’s just sad what had to happen to get to that point,” Cameron Vaughan says.
A judge reversed a man’s rape conviction and set him free. The woman who says she was raped by him spoke out about the judge’s decision, saying she feels vindicated.
Cameron Vaughan was 16 years old when she says she was sexually assaulted after passing out drunk at a high school graduation party in Quincy, Illinois.
“Immediately after I knew what was going on I pushed him off and he rolled off the couch and he jumped up and started playing video games,” Vaughan says.
Drew Clinton, who was 18 years old at the time, gave up his right to a trial by jury. Instead, his guilt or innocence was determined solely by the judge, who found him guilty of rape.
Vaughan expected to see Clinton sent to prison but was horrified when the judge, Robert Adrian, reversed the guilty verdict and set Clinton free.
Adrian decided that sentencing Clinton to the mandatory four years in prison was too long. The judge announced he was reversing the decision, finding the defendant not guilty.
“[Adrian] blamed me for what happened,” Vaughan says.
Clinton “served almost 5 months in the county jail. For what happened in this case, that is plenty of punishment,” Adrian said.
After public outcry, the Illinois Courts Commission slammed the judge’s “utter disregard for the truth, the judiciary and our justice system.” Adrian has been removed from the bench.
“I’m happy that the judge was removed and he can’t hurt anybody else but it’s just sad what had to happen to get to that point,” Vaughan says.
Judge Adrian remains defiant.
“If you actually look at the evidence in the case, then in fact you will see I made the right decision finding him not guilty,” Adrian tells Inside Edition. “What message does it send? That an innocent man doesn’t have to go to jail.”
When asked if the assault had happened to his own daughter, Adrian says, “I do not believe she would have put herself in that situation.”
Vaughan says she is still rebuilding her life after the traumatic ordeal.
“I just want any victims of rape to know you need to stand up for yourself. Don’t be afraid that a judge won’t find him guilty,” she says.
Under the Fifth Amendment, Clinton cannot be retried.
