Suspect in drugging rape pleads innocent

SANDPOINT — A Priest River man pleaded innocent Monday to drugging and raping Oldtown woman.

Carl Gene Wilson's three-day jury trial on a charge of rape is scheduled to start on Jan. 10 in 1st District Court. The penalty for rape in Idaho ranges from one year to life in prison.

Wilson waived a preliminary hearing in magistrate court last month, clearing the way for his arraignment in the higher court. Wilson is free on bond pending trial and a judge has ordered him to have no contact with the alleged victim or her roommate.

The state alleges Wilson, 42, slipped the drug GHB into the woman's drink while having cocktails at an Oldtown home on June 15. The woman, 24, told investigators Wilson mixed the drinks on the night in question.

The woman went unconscious and later awoke to find Wilson sexually assaulting her, according to court records. A urine sample obtained from the woman showed the presence of gamma hydroxybutric acid, a central nervous system depressant. GHB, depending on the dosage, can induce unconsciousness and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency classifies it as a "predatory drug" because it is often used to facilitate sexual assaults.