Judge presiding over LSU student's attack makes unprecedented decision, prompting questions about conflicts

Kerry Miller, a lawyer for Madison Brooks' mother, reacts to defense lawyers claiming the defendants obtained verbal consent from Madison Brooks, telling 'The Story' it's a case of 'classic victim blaming.'

The Louisiana judge presiding over a high-profile criminal case accusing Black men of raping a White LSU student dismissed a 1972 rape conviction a year after she released a different rape suspect on reduced bail. 

District Judge Gail Horne Ray's decisions, coupled with her son's serial rape conviction and her potential bias as a lifetime member of the NAACP, has raised concerns about conflicts of interest. 

Ray took her oath of office as a 19th Judicial District Court judge Jan. 12, 2023. Three months later, she released De’Aundre Cox, who was accused of raping his preteen neighbor, without alerting the victim or notifying the district attorney's office. 

This month, she dismissed Donald Ray Link's 1972 conviction for aggravated rape, which hadn't even been requested by Link's lawyers. 

‘LAUGHING’ SUSPECT IN LSU STUDENT'S ALLEGED RAPE RECORDS ATTACK: ‘THEY FINNA RAPE HER’

Madison Brooks, 19, was a LSU sophomore when she was allegedly raped in January 2023 before she was fatally struck by a car. (Ashley Baustert)

Link, who was serving a lifetime sentence, appeared before Judge Ray last month to request eligibility for parole. 

Instead, she vacated the 50-year-old conviction because the jury was given "improper instructions" during the trial, which she called a "glaring error," WAFB reported based on court filings. 

SUSPECT IN LSU STUDENT ATTACK CLAIMS VICTIM'S ROMANTIC HISTORY ‘CRUCIAL’ TO DEFENSE

The unprecedented, unprompted decision bypassed the parole process and again set up another confrontation between