Rocio Isabel Smith Sentenced to Prison for Forcible Sex Abuse

Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill announced that a Third District Court judge sentenced Rocio Isabel Smith to prison for forcible sex abuse of a 14-year-old.

In October 2021, the teen was at his friend’s home and the defendant, his friend’s mother, touched him under his shirt and continued to touch him even after he told her he was only 14 years old. At one point, the defendant locked the teen in a room with her, with the lights off, and tried to take off his belt even though he told her no multiple times in the bedroom. When the teen said "no" to the defendant, she punched him in the chest. During that visit to the defendant’s home, the defendant sat on the couch next to the teen and put a blanket over them, which the teen tried to take off, but the defendant dug her nails into the teen’s arms. The defendant then unbuckled the teen’s belt and tried to unbutton and unzip his pants, but the teen stopped her. After that, the defendant touched the teen on his genitalia over his clothes, pulled her shorts aside and made him touch her genitalia.

The defendant was convicted of two counts of second-degree felony forcible sexual abuse by a jury on November 8, 2024. On January 3, 2025, a judge sentenced the defendant to serve an indeterminate term of not less than one year nor more than fifteen years in the Utah State Prison for each count of forcible sexual abuse. The sentences are set to run concurrently to each other.

“Adults who take advantage of our youth will be held to account for their abhorrent actions. We expect the adults in our community to protect our children, not exploit them. We appreciate the jury finding the defendant guilty of both charges and the judge for sending the defendant to prison for these heinous crimes,” said Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill. “Our prosecutors Dayne Skinner and Kelsey Huddleston worked hard to take this case to trial and to get a conviction. We are proud of their work and the work of our support staff that helped ensure accountability for the victim-survivor. We appreciate the investigation conducted by Sandy Police Department detectives that helped this case end in a guilty verdict.”