A former US judge who sentenced a sex attacker to just six months in prison has been fired from his new job as a school tennis coach following an outcry from pupils and parents.

Aaron Persky, who was ousted as a judge last year over his lenient sentencing of Stanford University student Brock Turner, had been hired over the summer to coach girls at Lynbrook High School in San Jose, California.

The district schools authority said it terminated his employment this week after more than 1,200 people signed a petition condemning the appointment as “reprehensible”. Protests had also been planned.

Mr Persky, 57, became the first California judge to be removed from office in 86 years after losing a recall vote in June 2018. Campaigners said Turner's sentence helped to perpetuate a “culture of impunity for high-status perpetrators of sexual assault or domestic violence”.

Prosecutors had called a six-year jail term for the student, a star of the elite university's swimming team, after he was convicted of sexually assaulting and attempting to rape an unconscious woman on campus in 2015.

But the judge sentenced him to six months, of which he served only three. He ruled Turner bore “less moral culpability” because he was drunk at the time of the attack and said prison would have “a severe impact on him”.

Rape and murder of 10-year-old girl sparks protests in Pakistan Show all 5 1 /5 Rape and murder of 10-year-old girl sparks protests in Pakistan Rape and murder of 10-year-old girl sparks protests in Pakistan People rally to protest against the murder and alleged rape of a 10-year-old girl, Farishta, in Islamabad, Pakistan, on 21 May 2019. EPA/ARSHAD ARBAB Rape and murder of 10-year-old girl sparks protests in Pakistan epa07590376 People rally to protest against the murder and alleged rape of a 10-year-old girl, Farishta, in Islamabad, in Peshawar, Pakistan, 21 May 2019. The 10-year old girl went missing on 16 May and her body was found on 20 May. EPA/ARSHAD ARBAB ARSHAD ARBAB EPA/ARSHAD ARBAB Rape and murder of 10-year-old girl sparks protests in Pakistan epa07590374 People rally to protest against the murder and alleged rape of a 10-year-old girl, Farishta, in Islamabad, in Peshawar, Pakistan, 21 May 2019. The 10-year old girl went missing on 16 May and her body was found on 20 May. EPA/ARSHAD ARBAB ARSHAD ARBAB EPA/ARSHAD ARBAB Rape and murder of 10-year-old girl sparks protests in Pakistan Members of a civil society group, Volunteer Force Pakistan, hold a demonstration to condemn the rape and killing of a girl, in Islamabad, Pakistan, Wednesday, May 22, 2019. Authorities in Pakistan suspended a police chief in the capital, Islamabad, over the disappearance, rape and killing of a 10-year-old girl whose case triggered widespread condemnation and outrage, including on social media. Officer Mohammad Imran says the chief, Mohammad Abbas, was suspended on Wednesday for failing to act promptly in the case. (AP Photo/Anjum Naveed) Anjum Naveed AP/Anjum Naveed Rape and murder of 10-year-old girl sparks protests in Pakistan epa07590377 People rally to protest against the murder and alleged rape of a 10-year-old girl, Farishta, in Islamabad, in Peshawar, Pakistan, 21 May 2019. The 10-year old girl went missing on 16 May and her body was found on 20 May. EPA/ARSHAD ARBAB ARSHAD ARBAB EPA/ARSHAD ARBAB

The case provoked widespread outrage after the survivor’s victim impact statement, which spoke of her lasting trauma, was published online and went viral.

The petition objecting to Mr Persky’s appointment as tennis coach accused the school of “explicitly and ignorantly allowing rape culture to ensue”. It said his role would mean schoolgirls being supervised by man who allowed sexual assault to be “brushed under the rug”.

In a statement released to local media on Tuesday, Fremont Union High School District said the former judge was “a qualified applicant for the position” and was hired after completing a background check.

But the following day, amid a growing backlash, it said: “Mr Persky's employment with the district as the junior varsity girls tennis coach has ended. We believe this outcome is in the best interest of our students and school community.”

A former Lynbrook student told NBC News the appointment was “a pretty big oversight”.

Mr Persky said his sacking had been “motivated by a desire to protect the players from the potentially intrusive media attention related to my hiring”.

“Although I am disappointed with the district's decision, it was a privilege to coach the team, if only for a short time,” he added in a statement.