The Louisiana Supreme Court has overturned a state judge’s decision to throw out a 1972 rape conviction, calling it a “grossly erroneous decision.”
Judge Gayle Horne Ray, who is presiding over a high-profile case involving the alleged rape of Louisiana State University student Madison Brooks, has tossed out the 1972 conviction of Donald Ray Link, a motion not requested by Mr. Link’s lawyers.
Link and his lawyers went before Judge Ray to seek parole eligibility but were denied, setting off a standoff with the East Baton Rouge District Attorney’s Office.
“The district judge’s inappropriate response to this order resulted in a grossly erroneous ruling that was vindictive, if not contemptuous, and, incredibly, created an illegal relief that defendants never sought,” the state Supreme Court wrote in its May 30 ruling.
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Judge Gayle Horne Ray, presiding over the alleged rape case involving LSU sophomore Madison Brooks, made the unprecedented and arbitrary decision to vacate the defendant’s 1972 rape conviction during a hearing on his application for parole eligibility. (Louisiana)
The two-page ruling, obtained by Fox News Digital, is packed with harsh words for Wray.
“A petition for clarification of a sentence is certainly a tool for district courts to set aside decades-old convictions,” the state Supreme Court justices wrote in their decision.
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“I have written separately to express my concern about this clear abuse of discretion by the district court judge in complying with this court’s order.”
Since taking office in January 2023, Wray has clashed several times with incumbent District Attorney Hillar Moore III, who has a history of granting leniency in rape cases.
Madison Brooks was remembered in her obituary as a beloved adventurer. Brooks, 19, died on Jan. 15, 2023. (The Brooks Family)
Three months after taking the job, she fired DeAndre Cox. On suspicion of rape He murdered his neighbor, who was in his early teens, without warning the victim or reporting the incident to Moore’s office.
Decades before she became a judge, she represented her son in the mid-1990s after he was arrested on multiple rape charges.
Ray eventually pleaded guilty to several counts of rape between November 1995 and November 1996 and fought for a lighter sentence.
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At the very least, the judge’s rape ruling, combined with her own son’s criminal history, has tainted an already controversial rape case and stoked Brooks’ family’s fears that Madison may not receive a fair trial.
Judge Wray did not respond to questions from Fox News Digital about potential conflicts of interest, the state Supreme Court’s decision or whether he had considered recusing himself from the Brooks case.
A sign for the Madison Brooks Foundation in Times Square on May 8, 2023. Brooks was killed after being hit by a car following an alleged rape. (Julia Bonavita/Fox News Digital)
Ashley Baustert, the mother of Madison Brooks, stands in front of the Madison Brooks Foundation sign in Times Square on May 8, 2023. Brooks was killed after being hit by a car. (Julia Bonavita/Fox News Digital)
Ray released Link after he alleged that “improper instructions” were given to jurors during the trial, which he called “plain error.”
Moore said the issue had been raised and rejected on appeal, and the Supreme Court also noted it in its decision.
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Moore did not respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment, and an attorney for Brooks’ family declined to comment as the case progresses through pretrial proceedings.
Ray and the East Baton Rouge district attorney will serve as presiding judge and lead prosecutor, respectively, in the rape allegation case of 19-year-old Louisiana State University sophomore Madison Brooks, which drew national attention last year.
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She was allegedly raped by four suspects — Kaivon Washington, Everett Lee, Kaysen Carver and Desmond Carter — in a car after a night of drinking at a bar in Tigerland, an LSU social spot notorious for crime, dim lighting and no sidewalks.
After the attack, the suspects reportedly left the 19-year-old sophomore, who was drunk and staggering around, on the side of a busy four-lane highway in the middle of the night.
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She was hit by a car and died from her injuries despite attempts by two good Samaritans to help.
Lawyers for the suspects, some of them civil rights lawyers, have argued that there are racist overtones in prosecutors’ aggressive pursuit of high-level charges against black men accused of raping women in the wake of public outcry.
Pictured left to right: Kaivon Washington, Everett Lee, Kaysen Carver and Madison Brooks. (East Baton Rouge Sheriff’s Office/Instagram)
Desmond Carter, 17, is being tried as an adult for the alleged rape of Louisiana State University sophomore Madison Brooks. (East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s Office)
Judge Ray is a Silver Life Member of the NAACP and has received the Justice for Youth Award from the Louisiana Juvenile Justice Project and the President’s Award from the Baton Rouge NAACP.
The Baton Rouge NAACP supported the judge and her work in the community and her commitment to justice.
“Judge Gayle Horne Ray has an outstanding record of achievement and a deep commitment to justice. Her life membership status with our organization is not dependent on her decision-making ability,” a Baton Rouge NAACP spokesperson told Fox News Digital in an email.
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“Our members and supporters come from many different backgrounds, including race, creed, belief system, sexual orientation and political affiliation. The NAACP stands firmly with Judge Ray and all of our members who are committed to justice.”
“We urge the state Supreme Court to consider the broader implications of any ruling in the context of a fair and impartial judicial process. Our organization’s history is deeply rooted in the pursuit of equality and justice for all people.”
“We trust that the state Supreme Court will consider the broader impact of any ruling in the context of a fair and impartial judicial process.”
Read the Louisiana Supreme Court decision — app users click here:
Tigerland in Baton Rouge, Jan. 24, 2023. Reggie’s Bar in Tigerland was reportedly one of the last places Louisiana State University student Madison Morgan was seen before her death. (KR/Mega, courtesy of Fox News Digital)
All suspects arrested and charged in the Brooks attack have pleaded not guilty and maintain their innocence.
The lawyers argued that the sex was consensual and even went so far as to argue that if Brooks had not died, there would have been no criminal case.
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Carver and Carter are scheduled to appear in court on July 2, but the hearing will be held behind closed doors due to the sensitive nature of the matter, Carver’s lawyer, Joe Long, said.
Long expects to have access to Brooks’ cellphone data during his court appearance.
LSU sorority student Madison Brooks was killed after being hit by a rideshare vehicle. (@madibrookss/Instagram)
LSU sorority student Madison Brooks was killed after being hit by a rideshare vehicle. (@madibrookss/Instagram)
“Following this hearing, the defense will review the blood alcohol content data and will challenge the blood alcohol levels present at the time of the alleged sexual contact,” Long said.
Prosecutors said her blood alcohol level was 0.319 percent, but the defense plans to dispute that. The legal limit for drivers in Louisiana is 0.08 percent.
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“Under Louisiana (law), the state has to prove that MB (Madison Brooks) was in an alcoholic coma and therefore could not legally consent to sexual activity. Coma is a medical term,” Long said.
“We look forward to litigating this matter in the fall. We have a protective order and cannot release the information we have until trial, so we ask the public for patience and to reserve judgment.”
