Utah social media influencer pleads guilty to aggravated assault charge

LOCAL NEWS

Aug 28, 2023, 9:40 AM | Updated: 9:42 am

A popular social media influencer from Herriman was charged with throwing metal chairs at her boyfriend, one of which hit her daughter. (Screenshot/TikTok)

(Screenshot/TikTok)

BY JOSH ELLIS

KSLTV.com

HERRIMAN, Utah — A popular Utah social media influencer who was previously charged with throwing metal bar stools at her boyfriend, one of which hit her 5-year-old daughter, has pleaded guilty to a felony count of aggravated assault.

Taylor Frankie Paul, 28, of Herriman, was arrested on Feb. 17 after police responded to her home on a report of domestic violence. Responding officers reported hearing screaming and yelling from inside the home.

Police said Paul was intoxicated when they arrived and they saw her “lunge at (her boyfriend), hitting/pushing (him)” when he attempted to talk to the responding officer. During the argument, Paul hit her boyfriend and threw “several household items” at him, including “metal chairs and a wooden child playset.”

“A video of the incident shows Paul kick (the boyfriend), put him in a chokehold and strike him multiple times. In the video Paul picks up a metal barstool and strikes (him) with it. Paul then picks up a second bar stool and throws it across the room, causing a hole in a wall and knocking down home décor. Paul continues and picks up a third barstool and strikes (the boyfriend) with it. The barstool then hits (her daughter) while she was laying on the couch,” the charges stated.

Police noted “redness and swelling around (her boyfriend’s) eyes, swelling on his elbow, scratches on his fingers, and a laceration on his neck.”

National websites have called Paul a “TikTok influencer who famously exposed her ‘soft swinging‘ behavior” last year. Paul’s then-husband filed for divorce in June and the divorce was finalized in August, according to court records.

She now has 4 million followers on TikTok, according to the app.

Court documents show Paul entered the plea agreement in abeyance in 3rd District Court on Friday. As part of the agreement, two third-degree felony counts of domestic violence in the presence of a child, a misdemeanor charge of child abuse with injury and a misdemeanor charge of criminal mischief were dismissed.

Under the agreement, Paul must enter a counseling or treatment program for substance abuse and obtain a domestic violence evaluation. The third-degree felony aggravated abuse count will be reduced to a misdemeanor after 36 months.

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