St. Paul Man Sentenced to 13 Years for Raping Vulnerable Adult

A St. Paul man will spend over a decade in prison for sexually assaulting an 18-year-old girl in his charge at an adult foster care home in Burnsville. The crime was discovered on a March morning, when the victim was found with bruises and abrasions about the neck and face, and a large gash running across her head.

Late Tuesday, Geoffrey Edward Florance, 27, pleaded guilty to criminal sexual conduct in the first degree. In exchange, the state dropped two additional charges against Florance: third-degree assault and criminal abuse of a vulnerable adult by a caregiver. Judge Mary Thiesen sentenced him 158 months in prison, a little more than 13 years.

In a statement to the press, Dakota County Attorney James Backstrom said the sentence fit the crime.

"This was an egregious assault upon an extremely vulnerable victim. The defendant deserved the lengthy prison term he received today for this serious crime," Backstrom said.

According to the original criminal complaint, the assault occurred during the early morning hours of March 27, 2012, while Florance was working the night shift at the autistic and seizure care facility in northwest Burnsville. However, the crime was not discovered until 8 a.m. the next day, when the girl, a low-cognitive adult, was discovered while the staff was serving breakfast. 

The girl was suffering from a large laceration to her head that required stitches. Scrapes and bruises covered her neck and face. When her eyes were examined, officers also noted the presence of petechiae, red pinpoints that indicate bleeding under the tissue. A medical exam revealed that the victim had been sexually assaulted.

Investigators found blood all over the property—in the driveway, throughout the house, and on the clothes the victim had been wearing the night before, which were found in the laundry. Officers also recovered a towel soaked in blood.

Florance's supervisor said that he had last seen the victim around midnight, about the time Florance arrived at work. The supervisor found that the girl had wet the bed and needed a shower. She was not injured at the time, the supervisor said. 

When questioned, Florance claimed that the victim hit her head while suffering from a seizure in the shower. He said he did not report the victim's injuries, which he is required to do, because he'd had a few drinks before coming to work and didn't want to get in trouble. When confronted with the results of the medical exam, he admitted to digitally penetrating the victim.

According to Dakota County records, Florance has a handful of minor offenses on his record, including convictions for fourth-degree damage to property, a fourth-degree DUI, and leaving the scene of an accident (property damage only).