for speeding and running a red light in Virginia at 19

the first daughters in an inflammatory Facebook post

Elizabeth Lauten resigned from her position working for a Republican today after

It has been revealed that Elizabeth Lauten, the former GOP staffer who called Sasha and Malia Obama 'classless,' was herself arrested for shoplifting as a teen

The GOP staffer who was forced to resign today after calling the first daughters 'classless' is now being exposed as a hypocrite.

Elizabeth Lauten, 31, stepped down from her job as communications director for a Republican representative after her Facebook diatribe against Sasha and Malia Obama's behavior and dress at the annual Turkey pardoning sparked outrage online.

Evidence has now emerged indicating Lauten didn't exactly practice what she preached when she was a teen, growing up out of the public eye in North Carolina.

When Lauten was 17, just a year older than the president's eldest daughter Malia, she was caught stealing from a Belk department store in her hometown, according to court records obtained by the Smoking Gun.

Lauten was charged with misdemeanor larceny for the crime in December 2000, but since she was a first-time offender she qualified for the District Court's deferred prosecution program and the charges were eventually dropped.

Public records also show that Lauten was ticketed at the age of 19 for speeding and running a red light in Virginia.

MailOnline reached out to Lauten for comment, but she did not respond to calls or emails.

The Obama Administration responded to Lauten's comments on Monday, with White House spokesman Josh Earnest saying he was surprised a congressional staffer would use a Thanksgiving-themed event to criticize the first family.

He says individuals who frequently speak publicly tend to be mindful of how their words are perceived. Earnest added that it's common sense that first daughters should be off-limits to criticism.

Earlier Monday, after thousands of calls for the self-professed media expert to be sacked, Lauten agreed to resign from her post as communications director for Rep Stephen Fincher of Tennessee.

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Scene of the crime? According to court documents obtained by the Smoking Gun, Lauten was 17-years-old when she was caught stealing from a Belk store in North Carolina. Public records indicate she was living near Jacksonville, North Carolina at the time, which has one Belk store in the local mall (pictured)

Harsh: Lauten wrote that 13-year-old Sasha (center) and her sister Malia, 16 (right), should 'dress like you deserve respect, not a spot at a bar' in her controversial Facebook post

Lauten told NBC News by phone on Monday morning that her resignation is already 'in the works,' four days after her controversial post on Facebook went viral.

'Dear Sasha and Malia,' she wrote in the post, 'I get you're both in those awful teen years, but you're a part of the First Family, try showing a little class.'

Resigned: Elizabeth Lauten has stepped down as communications director for Rep Stephen Fincher after writing this (left) diatribe against Malia and Sasha Obama on Thanksgiving, slamming their attire and attitude

Lauten added: 'Act like being in the White House matters to you.

'Dress like you deserve respect, not a spot at a bar.

'And certainly don't make faces during televised public events.'

Sasha, 13, was dressed in a short maroon dress with a long cream cardigan that matched her thick cream socks, worn over bare legs. Her sister Malia, 16, wore black tights under a mini kilt with a grey and cream jumper.

The White House has not commented on the incident.

Lauten apologized for her post hours later, writing that 'judgmental feelings truly have no place in my heart', saying that 'hours of prayer' had shown the error of her ways.

The girls' expressions during their father's Thanksgiving address prompted playful comments on social media.

After the President had pardoned the designated bird, a four-month-old 49-pounder called Cheese, he asked Malia if she wanted to pet the turkey.

'Nah', she replied, in a rare departure from her usual, gracious disposition, which prompted a flurry of remarks from viewers.

But Lauten's reaction sparked outrage.

The incident was not Lauten's first social media slip-up.

In August, she posted a tweet from her boss's verified Twitter account about 'shagging'.

Stephen Fincher's followers were baffled when he tweeted: 'God I love this song. And beach music. AND shagging #pandora,' in reference to an Embers playlist on Pandora radio.

Lauten later deleted the post and apologized for the 'accident' - but insisted 'shagging' is a dance term rather than a sexual reference.

'It had nothing to do with Stephen Fincher. I don't think he knows what Pandora is; he certainly doesn't have it,' she said, according to Politico.

Following mass outrage to her post on Thursday, Lauten deleted it, set her profile to private, and issued an apology: 'I reacted to an article and quickly judged the two young ladies in a way that I would never have wanted to be judged myself as a teenager.

Apology: Hours later she removed the original outburst, issued an apology and set her page to private

'After many hours of prayer, talking to my parents and re-reading my words online, I can see more clearly how hurtful my words were.

'Please know that these judgmental feelings truly have no pace in my heart.

'Furthermore, I'd like to apologize to all of those who I have hurt and offended with my words, and pledge to learn and grow (and I assure you I have) from this experience.'

Over the weekend, Lauten's critics defended Malia and Sasha by tweeting the renowned picture of George W Bush's daughter Jenna drunkenly tumbling over her friend on to the floor of a frat party, cigarette in hand, while her father was in office.

The 2001 photo, which earned the then 19-year-old the nickname Jenna And Tonic, went viral with the hash tag '#classy'.

Other responses included a picture of the moment Jenna, one of the former president's twin daughters, stuck out her tongue at White House photographers while riding in the presidential limousine.

'Did you forget that jenna bush got photographed at the age of 19 knocking someone over at a FRAT party? good lord,' one Twitter user wrote.

Another commented: 'The Bush twins used fake ID's to get into bars. & Jenna Bush stuck out tongue at press. Is that 'classy?' @DCGopGirl #tcot #UniteBlue.'

One wrote: 'Where were your ignorant comments on the Palin family brawl, the Bush girls (Jenna & Tonic).'

'So Sasha and Malia Obama have no class? Two words: Jenna Bush. #ElizabethLauten,' one tweet read.

And one said: 'I have a feeling that Jenna Bush & sister are a little ticked off at #ElizabethLauten for bringing their past behavior into the spotlight.'

Not fair: Twitter users rushed to defend the girls who Lauten said 'deserve a spot at a bar' rather than the White House

Unimpressed: The First Daughters looked bored and unimpressed by their father's jokes about turkey