The judge overseeing the horrifying rape case of LSU student Madison Brooks has an adult son with multiple sex offense convictions, and cleared another man's conviction out of the blue when he asked for a shorter sentence.
District Judge Gail Horne Ray's decisions have raised questions over a potential conflict of interest in Brooks' case.
Brooks, 19, was killed when she was hit by a car in East Baton Rouge,Louisiana, on January 15 2023 after she was allegedly raped by a group of men and left on the side of the road.
Ray is presiding over the men's trials, but her impartiality has been called into question after she dismissed Donald Ray Link's 1972 rape conviction this month and released rape suspect De’Aundre Cox on reduced bail last year.
East Baton Rouge District Attorney Hillar Moore III has clashed with Ray over the decisions telling WBRZ: 'I've never seen this done ever or heard of it ever done before.'
Madison Brooks, 19, died when she was hit by a car in East Baton Rouge, Louisiana , on January 15 after she was allegedly raped by four men
District Judge Gail Horne Ray's decisions, along with her son Nelson Dan Taylor Jr's multiple rape convictions, have raised questions over a potential conflict of interest in Brooks' case
Ray's son, Nelson Dan Taylor Jr, was convicted of raping multiple classmates - aged between 12 and 17 - between 1995 and 1996, breaking into their homes in a mask and attacking them at knifepoint.
He pleaded guilty to all of the rapes and was sentenced to 50 years in prison with a requirement to serve at least 25.
Ray took office as a 19th Judicial District Court judge January 12, 2023.
Three months later, she released De’Aundre Cox, who was accused of raping his preteen neighbor, on reduced bail without alerting the victim or notifying the district attorney's office.
Cox is facing two counts of aggravated rape against a now-teenage girl who lives near his family’s home in the Park Forest neighborhood. She was 12 when the alleged sexual abuse began.
She told officers that Cox threatened her with a gun before raping her on two occasions. The abuse was discovered when the victim's older brother, who was friends with Cox, found a video of the attacks on his phone.
District Attorney Hillar Moore slammed Ray's decision to release him last April and said his office was only notified a week after he was released.
He told The Advocateat the time: 'We really are confused as to how this bond was reduced without notice to the state and an opportunity for us to be heard on behalf of the victim. And we are concerned as to what happened and how it happened.'
The victim's mother told the outlet that the family 'live in fear' and said: 'Why didn’t they let me know? We could’ve changed up, because these people have already threatened me.'
This month, Ray clashed with the DA again over her decision to throw out convicted rapist Donald Ray Link's 1972 conviction for aggravated rape.
Link was serving a life sentence for threatening a woman with a butcher's knife before raping her.
He appeared before Ray asking her to reduce his sentence so he could ask for parole.
Instead of reducing his sentence, she overturned his conviction entirely, bypassing the parole process.
Moore told WBRZ her decision was 'unheard of', adding: 'She has no authority whatsoever to do what she did and her reasoning was erroneous.'
Ray's decisions and her family history have raised further questions over Ray's impartiality in the ongoing Brooks case.
Her decisions were slammed online with one Twitter user saying 'she needs to be removed' and another saying 'this judge should be removed! Absolutely disgusting.'
Moore and Ray did not return Fox News Digital's requests for comment.
Three men have been charged with first degree rape in Brooks' case, Kaivon Washington, Casen Carver and Desmond Carter - and a fourth, Everett Lee, was arrested but has not been charged.
Brookswas allegedly rapedin the back of the men's car while the other suspects watched after a night of drinking at a bar in Tigerland.
After the alleged attack in their car, the suspects allegedly left Brooks stumbling and drunk on the side of a busy four-lane highway.
She was hit by a car around 3am and died from her injuries.
Brooks' alleged attackers claim they did not rape her and say only consensual sex happened in the back of the car.
Brooks was allegedly raped by Carter and Washington in the back of their car while the other two suspects watched after a night of drinking at a bar in Tigerland
Casen Carver, 18, (left) Kaivon Washington, 18, (second left) and Everett Lee, 28, (second right) and Desmond Carter, 17, (right) were all arrested on rape-related charges
Brooks was last seen drunkenly stumbling out of Reggie's bar, which has since had its license revoked, with the group.
Other footage released by authorities shows the student running after the group of men on the night she died.
Fellow Varsity football player Washington has been accused of raping another young woman who claims he attacked her in October last year after targeting her at Reggie’s, the same bar the group met Brooks.
The victim in the October case says she was too drunk to go home so asked if she could stay at one of Washington's friend's apartments.
According to his arrest affidavit, they all went back to the home together, where she and the friend started having sex in front of Washington.
The friend allegedly became more 'aggressive', pinning her down and ignoring her as she pleaded with him to 'stop'.
Other footage released by authorities shows the student running after the group of men on the night she died
The 29-second clip shows Madi appearing to tell the teenager Desmond Carter, 17, to 'get out' of the car so she can 'Uber on her own'
Washington was watching but then approached and felt the victim's breast and vagin*, the affidavit claims.
The alleged incident is the third accusation of rape to have been made against Washington.
In addition to Brooks, he is accused of raping a 12-year-old girl in 2020 after following her home from a pool party when he was 15.
The Walker High School Varsity Football player has been charged with first-degree rape in that case, with prosecutors vowing to upgrade the charges in relation to Brooks.
Lawyers for Washington previously submitted video footage to the court in an attempt to prove that the drunk sorority girl was able to consent to the acts – but a judge felt it showed 'criminality'.
A legal expert told DailyMail.com that the judge's 'inappropriate' comments could 'taint the public opinion' of the defendants.
Washington can reportedly be heard in the footage laughing at Brooks as she slurs her words after the alleged anal rape.
Her sorority Alpha Phi confirmed that she donated her kidneys and heart
Madi died after being hit by a ride-share car at 3am on January 15, when she was dropped off by the four men who had picked her up at a college bar
Louisiana's first-degree rape statute carries a mandatory life sentence without the possibility of parole.
Brooks died after being hit by a ride-share car at 3am on January 15, when she was dropped off by the four men.
Two Good Samaritans reportedly stopped to perform CPR on the sophom*ore LSU student after the collision.
East Baton Rouge Parish Coroner's Office says they were guided by first responders on the phone in the pouring rain after Madi was hit by the ride-share car.
They confirmed that Madi Brooks died from 'multiple traumatic injuries' when she was hit by a car after allegedly being raped.
Police confirmed that the driver of the vehicle will not be charged as he was not impaired and contacted emergency services immediately.
A memorial was created for the 'amazing young woman' who had 'limitless potential' by her friends on the highway where she died.
Carter has been formally charged with the first-degree rape and third-degree rape of Madi, but a grand jury chose not to indict him on one count of kidnapping
Madison Brooks (left) seen behind the bar at Reggie's with two sorority sisters. She had been drinking at the bar before she was raped and fatally struck by a car on January 14
Pictures show Washington partying with friends and posing for the camera, while another shows him topless and clutching an inflatable alien
The bar where Madi worked, according to several social media posts, has also had its responsibility for the incident called into question.
Surveillance footage surrounding Reggie's bar, where the group met, shows Madi drunk and stumbling around, according to police documents.
The Louisiana ATC has confirmed that they have suspended the license of Reggie's following the 'seriousness of the allegations and potential threat to public safety'.
An attorney for the bar, Kris Perrett, confirmed in a statement that they are 'fully cooperating with authorities'.
A lawyer for Brooks' family issued a statement last year saying: 'She was raped. Rape is rape. It's just a horrific, terrible situation.
'And to the extent that those involved with the alleged rapist want to blame the victim and show up at press conferences and say things … we're standing up for Madi. That's not right.'
