Police arrest 2 Washington County residents caught having sex in library parking lot

Stock image | St. George News

ST. GEORGE — A Washington County registered sex offender allegedly pulled a knife on a mother and her 12-year-old son Saturday morning after they spotted him having sex in a Washington County library parking lot.

Stephen Rodney David Brace, of LaVerkin, Utah, booking photo posted Aug. 12, 2017 | Photo courtesy of the Washington County Sheriff’s Office, St. George News

The woman and her son had just arrived to clean the Hurricane public library located at 36 S. 300 West at around 5 a.m. Saturday when they noticed a car parked in the parking lot near a trash bin, according to a probable cause statement filed by the Hurricane City Police Department in support of the arrest.

When the mother and son exited the building to empty the trash into the trash bin, they noticed another car in the parking lot with a man and woman having sex in the backseat, the report stated.

The man and woman – later identified as Stephen Brace, 22, and Annebelle Justice, 20, both of LaVerkin – were completely naked when the mother and her son saw them, prompting the mother to begin recording the individuals for documentation as they were having sex in a public place, according to the statement.

The mother reportedly approached the car and told Brace and Justice they “could not be naked in the parking lot” and told them to leave, the report stated. Justice allegedly told officers she heard the mother say, “My kid is here.”

When the mother began taking pictures of Brace’s license plate, Brace allegedly pulled out a knife from his pocket and exposed the blade, telling the mother and boy to “get the f— out of here,” the arresting officer wrote in a sworn statement.

Annebelle Justice, of LaVerkin, Utah, booking photo posted Aug. 12, 2017 | Photo courtesy of the Washington County Sheriff’s Office, St. George News

The two told police they “feared for their lives” and began running back toward the library, according to the statement.

Brace and Justice were later arrested at their individual homes and booked into the Washington County Purgatory Correctional Facility.

The Washington County Attorney’s Office filed an Information in 5th District Court accusing Brace of two third-degree felony counts of lewdness by a sex offender and lewdness by a sex offender involving a child, along with a class A misdemeanor count of making a threat of a dangerous weapon in a fight.

The attorney’s office filed an Information in 5th District Court accusing Justice of a class A misdemeanor count of lewdness involving a child and a class B misdemeanor count of lewdness.

According to the report, Brace is listed on the registered sex offender list for attempted sexual abuse of a child.

Persons arrested or charged are presumed innocent until found guilty in a court of law or as otherwise decided by a trier-of-fact.

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Twitter: @STGnews

Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2017, all rights reserved.

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12 Comments

  • comments August 14, 2017 at 6:49 pm

    I’m not sure what’s worse, these 2 guys doing the nasty in public or the fact that the nosy old voyeur lady recorded them. It’s just creepy all around. Next time maybe these 2 find a better spot. Isn’t that what gas station men’s bathrooms are for? lol

    • SteveSGU August 28, 2017 at 10:10 pm

      The attitudes of most of the commenters here are appalling.

  • R. August 14, 2017 at 8:14 pm

    Yes it is weird that she chose to video the act, they should have set up a Go Fund Me account for a hotel room, would have saved them from the embarrassment of this whole thing. I think the story could have done without plastering their names all over the news. He’s a sex offender, but I don’t think his intention was to expose himself in front of a child.

  • 42214 August 14, 2017 at 8:44 pm

    I doubt he was arrested for breaking and entering.

  • People August 15, 2017 at 1:08 am

    I know whenever my mom wants to protect me from something, she starts recording it on her camera.

  • Mike P. August 15, 2017 at 2:23 am

    Thanks for the evening laugh ! Too funny.

  • Arcana August 15, 2017 at 2:05 pm

    Wow. That lady recording them is a sicko. Mother of the year right there.

    • LocalTourist August 15, 2017 at 3:51 pm

      Notice the way the cops didn’t do anything about a woman having her 12-year-old child violate labor laws by making him go to work at 5am?

  • ScanMeister August 15, 2017 at 4:44 pm

    Seems appropriate that they were Booked in the Library parking lot. Would Dewy Decimal approve?

  • ladybugavenger August 15, 2017 at 7:09 pm

    Who starts video recording people having sex? That’s crazy. Now she has porn on her phone. Did the police erase the video?

    He didn’t pull a knife on her. He pulled out a knife while he was still in the car.

    • comments August 16, 2017 at 11:52 am

      How light is it at 5am? Did she whip out her flashlight and shine in on them I wonder. Should have charged the old loon with voyeurism. She’s basically a creeper and a perv.

      • comments August 16, 2017 at 11:55 am

        And did she walk the little boy right up to the car and say “c’mon boy, we gonna peep into this here car, it’ll be a good show”

        too funny, hahahaha

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