Former San Jose City Councilman Omar Torres today pleaded no contest to three felony counts of molesting a child in 1999. He will be sentenced at a later date.
Torres appeared in Santa Clara County Superior Court as voters were going to three downtown voting centers to elect a new council member for the District 3 seat from which Torres resigned last November just before his arrest on the sex charges.
He had initially pleaded not guilty to the charges of sodomy and oral copulation by force, violence, duress, menace or fear, and lewd and lascivious acts on a minor under the age of 14. The assaults occurred beginning in 1990 when the victim was 4 years old and Torres, now 43, was a teenager, and continued for nine years, according to prosecutors.
Torres served slightly less than two years as council member. He now faces a prison term and lifetime registration as a sex offender. There were no conditions attached to his no contest pleas, which amount to convictions for the crimes.
“It is heartbreaking that someone elected to represent and serve thousands of San Jose residents had previously molested a small child,” District Attorney Jeff Rosen said in a statement today. “Children are vulnerable and precious, and my Office will do everything in our legal power to fight for their safety and fully prosecute those who hurt them.”
The victim had contacted police last year after execution of search warrants revealed a separate department investigation into potential sexual abuse of minors by Torres.
The criminal charges against Torres specifically involve alleged acts from Nov. 25, 1999, about a month after Torres turned 18 years old, prosecutors said.
Omar Torres City Council colleagues allowed him to stay on the Council and collect a paycheck from taxpayers from early October through late November 2024, despite knowing the contents of the police affidavit leading to the issuance of the search warrant against Torres. The City Charter allowed them to remove him immediately but they demurred and the mayor dissembled, likely because Torres would have publicized in the removal hearing who knew what and when.
The City may have incurred liabilities for leaving Torres on the Council knowing what is reported.
Good Job District Attorney Jeff Rosen!
Should there be a Recall of responsible Council Members?
David S.Wall
Torres resigned on election day in November and was locked up the same day. Not sure how that translates into collecting a paycheck through late November; maybe he had earned vacation days. One hopes he had enough notice to put affairs in order before his extended stay.
Doing the math, the D.A. has threaded a needle here. Homie Omie got popped for doing what he’d been doing already for nine years and then stopped, after another twenty-five years! It started when kids were 9 and 4, so by the time they were 18 and 13, that makes it a felony. A month earlier, they were 17 and 13, both juveniles. A month later, there seems to be no evidence. A year later, they were 19 and 14, might’ve been a misdemeanor then, but that didn’t happen.
Kinda makes ya wonder where both sets of both parents were for the first nine years and why a kid gets all of the blame thirty-four years after it started.
Torres announced his resignation on Election Day but made it effective three weeks later.
If Torres is 43 now and incidents started in 1990 when the other kid was four, that means Torres was 8. It continued over the course of years but you’re correct in highlighting the math of their ages.
Studies have shown kids who act out inappropriately that was at such a young age were probably victims of abuse themselves.
I hope sentencing judge takes that into consideration because it seems like there’s more than one victim
I hope the sentencing judge takes into account that Torres lied on official City of San Jose stationery in early October 2024 when he falsely claimed to have been unlawfully detained. He abused his office by defaming the police involved. And he insulted his constituents.
This is a deeply disturbing case, and the no contest plea by Omar Torres to such serious charges is a sobering moment for the San Jose community.
Wow, what a heavy piece of news! It’s important that justice is served and that children are protected. I hope this raises awareness about these types of crimes. I really hope the victim finds peace.
Wow, that’s just awful. It’s so disappointing to hear about someone in power abusing their position like that. Hope justice is served and the victim gets the support they need.