photo by: Douglas County Sheriff's Office

Derek Sean Conner

A Eudora man who was originally charged with raping a woman after a party at his home last year pleaded no contest on Monday in Douglas County District Court to two counts of aggravated battery.

The man, Derek Sean Conner, 34, had faced one count of rape, a level one felony, in connection with an incident on Jan. 23, 2022, when a 26-year-old woman claimed he sexually assaulted her when she was incapable of giving consent, as the Journal-World previously reported.

On Monday, Judge Stacey Donovan accepted Conner’s no contest plea and found him guilty of two counts of aggravated battery, a level seven felony.

Deputy District Attorney Joshua Seiden, providing the court with a factual basis for the plea, said that at trial evidence would have shown that the woman was at the party, near the home’s bar, and that Conner grabbed her in “a rude, insulting or angry manner.” He said that Conner was a body-builder and was much bigger than the woman. Seiden said Conner “physically overpowered” the woman again in another room of the home and that on that occasion an altercation ensued between Conner, the woman and Conner’s wife and that police were called to the Eudora home.

As part of the plea agreement, defense attorney Christopher Joseph and Seiden jointly recommended that Conner be sentenced to 24 months of supervised probation and that there be no finding of a sexual motivation, meaning Conner would not be required to register as a sex offender.

Judge Stacey Donovan told Conner that, regardless of the sentencing recommendation, she could sentence him to 11 to 34 months on each count and fine him up to $100,000, depending on his criminal history. Donovan ordered a presentence investigation and scheduled Conner to be sentenced on April 17.