Utah 'Karen' is fired from state AG's office after being charged with sexual battery for yanking down young woman's skirt in restaurant with cold hands

23/05/2024

The incident unfolded last month in the lobby of a St. George restaurantA Utah legal secretary was charged with sexual battery after the confrontationThe 19-year-old victim told cops she felt 'violated' by the woman's actions

A Utah woman who was charged last month with sexual battery after she pulled down the skirt of a teenager at a restaurant was fired from her job at the Utah Attorney General's Office.

Freshly-released court documents reveal that Ida Lorenzo, 48, was terminated from her relatively new position on April 25, the same day she was charged with sexual battery.

Lorenzo was captured on video at a crowded restaurant in St. George, Utah, tugging on another woman's skirt and told her to be mindful of 'what she was showing, especially with small kids around,' according to a police booking affidavit.

During the viral, 36-second video, the young woman's friends can be heard telling Lorenzo: 'You do not get to touch her.'

Ida Lorenzo was charged with a Class A misdemeanor, after the skirt-pulling incident on April 20 in the lobby of Sakura Japanese Steakhouse . A TikTok video of the altercation, filmed by one of the victim's friends, later went viral

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Lorenzo also appeared to flash a badge and said, 'I happen to work for the state,' as she threatened to call child protective services.

Local law enforcement authorities say on the day after the incident occurred, Lorenzo called 911 to report harassment related to the unpleasant encounter.

She was charged in 5th District Court on the 25th with sexual battery, a class A misdemeanor.

Local outlet KSL reported that, according to records released Wednesday via a public records request, Lorenzo's employment with the Washington County office of the state AG was terminated on the same day that she was charged.

The documents noted that she had only been in the job for around six weeks, after she was hired on March 4 by the office as a legal secretary.

Lorenzo was booked into the Purgatory Correctional Facility in Hurricane and released after posting bail. She is seen here seconds before her arrest

The termination letter reportedly reads: 'I am writing to inform you that you have not passed your probationary employment period successfully and today, April 25, 2024, you are being separated from state employment with the attorney general's office.

'Your noncompliance with policies and standards related to performance contributed to this decision.'

According to police documents, the evening of the alleged assault, Lorenzo approached the young woman and pulled her skirt down while telling her to 'be aware of what she was showing, especially with small kids around.

'This caused all the people with her to accuse (Lorenzo) of sexually assaulting the female,' read police records.

Lorenzo told authorities she 'never' touched the other woman, and that she had merely 'touched the female's skirt.'

An officer told her that she had still 'engaged in criminal behavior by touching the female's clothing, and her behavior was not appropriate.'

The incident took place in Sakura Japanese Steakhouse in St. George, Utah on April 20

Following the incident, the teenager contact the police to report that she had been 'sexually assaulted while in the lobby' of the St. George restaurant.

The woman (Lorenzo) had 'confronted' her 'while her back was turned to her, and without any notice, or formal warning, she felt cold hands go up her skirt, touching her buttocks before she felt her skirt being pulled on,' according to police records.

The young woman said she felt 'startled' and 'violated' by the encounter.

Lorenzo is next scheduled to appear in court in June.

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