Utah mother who went topless in front of stepchildren at home may have to register as a sex offender
WEST VALLEY CITY, UTAH: A Utah woman who went topless in front of her stepchildren inside her home is facing criminal charges and may be forced to register as a sex offender.
MEAWW previously reported that the incident happened when Tilli Buchanan, 27, and her husband Jared, were installing insulation in their garage at their West Valley City home two years ago and stripped down to their underwear to rinse the itchy material off their body.
This was when Jared's children, two boys aged 13 and nine, and a girl aged 10, walked in on them and appeared "embarrassed."
Buchanan said she tried to tell them there was nothing to be ashamed about and that there was no difference between her and Jared being topless, but the incident reached the ears of the children's biological mother, who reported it to the police. The 27-year-old did not deny that she had been topless but argued that her being punished was constitutionally unfair as her husband, who was also topless, was not reprimanded.
"I was devastated," she said at the time. "Because the moment I took to teach the kids, it was kind of smashed. Like you can’t teach kids this. In fact, you’re going to be charged for even bringing this up."
Speaking at Salt Lake City’s 3rd District Court this past week, her lawyers asked a judge to declare Utah's lewdness law unconstitutional and argued that it treated men and women unfairly.
"What’s important to look at, to see when you look at the statute, is that there’s part of it that says this part of a woman is inherently obscene and this part of a man isn't," said Leah Farrell, the senior attorney at the American Civil Liberties Union of Utah. "And that really sets up an unequal, unfair dichotomy."
Buchanan said she is hopeful the law is struck down "especially given it was in the privacy of my own home. My husband was right next to me in the same exact manner that I was, and he’s not being prosecuted."
The authorities have presented a different version of events and alleged that the mother was drunk at the time and stripped down to prove a point. They said she announced she would only put her shirt back on if Jared exposed his penis.
Buchanan is facing three counts of lewdness in front of a child, a class A misdemeanor. If convicted, she will have to register as a sex offender. A ruling on the case is expected within two months.