Offender not going to state hospital

Published 10:20 am Wednesday, February 19, 2014

A high-risk sex offender being held in the Freeborn County jail will likely not be committed to a state mental health hospital, after all.

The Freeborn County Attorney’s Office has asked to withdraw its petition to have Lorenzo Martin Torres, 24, committed to a state hospital as a sexually dangerous person.

The two medical examiners who evaluated Torres had differing opinions and could not reach middle ground to support the commitment, said Freeborn County Attorney Craig Nelson.

Lorenzo Torres

Lorenzo Torres

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Torres, a Level 3 offender and Albert Lea native, has been in the Freeborn County jail awaiting a decision since he was released from prison in Rush City in November.

Nelson said Torres’ lawyer asked for two weeks to find a treatment program and residence for Torres before he is released into the public.

A notification fact sheet sent out by the Police Department stated Torres has a history of sexual contact with female victims ages 12 to 15. He was known to his victims.

Torres was serving time in prison for one count of fifth-degree criminal sexual conduct with a 13-year-old girl, and one count of second-degree criminal sexual conduct with a 12-year-old girl, according to Freeborn County District Court documents. Both crimes reportedly took place at hotels in Albert Lea in 2010, and he was already on probation at the time the incidents occurred.

Nelson said when Torres is released from the jail, he will be on intensive supervised release with the Minnesota Department of Corrections.

Previously, this included wearing a GPS device and meeting with a DOC agent in person four times per week.