A Guilty Plea in Rape of Unconscious Woman

ST. CLOUD -- A St. Cloud man has pleaded guilty to raping a woman who was drunk and passed out in her shower.

Twenty-seven-year-old Nicholas Behling pleaded guilty to one count of 1st-Degree Criminal Sexual Conduct in what's called a Norgaard plea. A Norgaard plea is where a defendant claims they were too drunk or under the influence of chemicals to recall the facts of what happened.

According to the criminal complaint, officers responded to the woman's home in north St. Cloud last March. The woman told police she had come home, feeling sick from a night of drinking and fell asleep in the shower. She said Behling was brought to her home by a friend. She said he then went into the shower and forced himself on her while she repeatedly told him no.

Court records show Behling initially denied any sexual contact with the woman, at one point even denying knowing the victim's name. However, he later admitted to being in the shower with her and said the sex was consensual.

As part of the plea agreement, Behling will be sentenced to 8-years and 8-months in prison at his hearing in August.