By RYAN TARINELLI
Associated Press

DALLAS (AP) - Local leaders say a plea deal allowing a former Baylor University fraternity president to serve no jail times highlights the outsized influence alumni play in shaping the criminal justice system in and around Waco.

Jacob Walter Anderson was accused of raping a woman outside a 2016 fraternity party. His controversial plea agreement allows him to avoid jail or being listed as a sex offender.

The judge, prosecutor and defense attorney in the case all have degrees from Baylor. Local leaders say those connections to the world's largest Baptist university cast doubt on the handling of the case.

Community leaders say they don't believe there was collusion in the case, but they say the outcome shows a failure of the legal system and reflects a culture of preferential treatment of people with status in the Baylor community.

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