Man Pleads Guilty to Contacting Woman While in Jail

ST. CLOUD -- A St. Cloud man has been sent to prison after pleading guilty to two felony counts of violating a no-contact order within 10-years of the first of two or more convictions.

As part of the plea by 29-year-old Andrew Retzlaff, two felony charges of domestic assault against a pregnant woman were dismissed.

Stearns County Judge Kris Davick-Halfen immediately sentenced Retzlaff to two years and one month in prison during his court hearing Tuesday.  Retzlaff will get credit for serving 67 days in the Stearns County Jail.

Court records show Retzlaff was contacting the victim through phone calls made from the Stearns County Jail while he was awaiting hearings on the domestic assault charges.

Retzlaff was arrested in May after the woman told police he put his hand over her mouth, punched her in the arm and grabbed her arm so she couldn't walk away.  Those charges were dismissed as part of the plea agreement.

Retzlaff has prior convictions of assault and domestic assault in Sherburne County in 2008 and 2009.