Judge Gary Lee agreed to lower bond to $50,000 cash or corporate surety for Scott Andrew Flood, 29, of Bowbells, who has been held at the Ward County Jail for nine months on a charge that he beat and raped a woman working as a prostitute at the Sleep Inn in Minot on Feb. 19.

Ward County Deputy State’s Attorney Kelly Dillon argued that Flood is a danger to the community and the bond should not be lowered. Flood’s defense attorney, Kyle Craig, had argued for a $20,000 cash or corporate surety bond, which he said is in line with bond granted in similar cases in the state. Lee said he would lower the bond to $50,000 because Flood has been held in jail a significant amount of time and the trial is not scheduled until March 11, 2019 and Flood is presumed innocent.

Flood has pleaded not guilty to the Class AA felony gross sexual imposition charge and the Class C felony aggravated assault charge.

According to court documents, Flood attacked and tried to strangle the woman, who was born in 1998, after she told him it was time for him to leave. He offered her more money for more time and she refused because he didn’t have enough money. He then attacked her. The woman’s 18-year-old friend and co-worker was hiding in the hotel bathroom during the attack and ran out of the room when she heard the woman start to scream. Flood left his driver’s license behind and the woman’s friend took a picture of it before Flood returned and got his wallet back.

Flood’s attorney, Kyle Craig, said there are inconsistencies in the case. He wants to argue that someone else could have injured the woman.

Both the alleged victim and her friend had been charged with prostitution in Bismarck about a month before the incident in Minot. They were not charged with prostitution in Minot. An officer testified at a preliminary hearing for Flood earlier this year that charges would probably not be filed against an alleged victim in a case such as this one.

Lee briefly cleared the courtroom during discussion of the case on Thursday after the bond reduction hearing.