UTAH COUNTY, Utah — A Utah County judge granted a pretrial protective order against GOP state Senate candidate Brandon Beckham on Wednesday, after the woman he’s charged with sexually abusing reported that he recently interacted with years-old social media posts.
Utah County prosecutor Stephen Jones said during the early Wednesday court hearing that someone named Brandon Beckham went through two or three years of Venmo transactions and “liked” some of them. The mobile payment app features a newsfeed where users can see, like or comment on friends’ transactions.
Beckham is running against incumbent State Sen. Keith Grover for the Republican nomination in Utah County’s District 23, and was charged with a second-degree felony count of sexual abuse in February. He has denied the allegations.
Beckham’s attorney Randall Spencer told 4th District Judge Thomas Low that Beckham hasn’t had any contact with the woman in about a year — including liking Venmo payments.
