Severe bad health did the trick for John St. Marie, 66, a former assistant Hennepin County attorney who ran "Nice Guys." The man behind a secretive online prostitution ring for a group of well-to-do men who dubbed themselves "Minnesota Nice Guys" won't receive any jail time. John St. Marie, 66, a former assistant Hennepin County attorney, pleaded guilty Tuesday to three felony counts of promoting prostitution. The lack of jail time recognized his severe health problems, said Jim Dahlquist, St. Marie's attorney. He could be sent to jail if he violates his probation, and was ordered to pay a sum to a women's advocacy group. "An offer was made, and we went ahead and did it," said Dahlquist. "John has a great deal of respect for the legal process, and he decided not to prolong the issue." St. Marie, who uses a wheelchair because of childhood polio, can move his neck and a finger on his left hand. Post-polio syndrome forced him to retire in 2003 because he needs round-the-clock health care, said Dahlquist. The deal was made before an upcoming settlement conference with the Ramsey County attorney's office, which handled the case because of St. Marie's employment with Hennepin County. A key consideration in making the deal was the great expense to taxpayers to incarcerate him, said Paul Gustafson, spokesman for the county attorney's office. "He did plead guilty to three counts and is now a felon, plus he has been disbarred because of the charges," Gustafson said. "We had to be practical, too, in terms of would it send any greater message to send him to prison knowing there would be significant expense involved." As part of the plea agreement, three other counts of promoting prostitution were dismissed. St. Marie will be sentenced Jan. 20, at which time Dahlquist said his client "will have a lot more to say." St. Marie, of Minneapolis, couldn't be reached for comment, but Dahlquist said "this has been tremendously difficult for him. ." The case against St. Marie and the "Nice Guys" started in July 2008 and lasted more than a year. Police said St. Marie built a client list of 30 business owners, lawyers, accountants and mortgage bankers who met women at some of Minneapolis' finest hotels. The group got its name because members had clean backgrounds, regarded themselves as above mistreating the women and paid well, police said. The men would receive e-mails advertising when the women would be flown in from Florida, and St. Marie scheduled appointments. One man said he was willing to pay $1,200 for a woman, according to the charges. The "Nice Guys" ring was one of the more unusual rings they've seen in Minnesota, said Sgt. Grant Snyder and Sgt. Matt Wente, investigators for the Minneapolis Police Department's Violent Offender Task Force. The sophisticated operation flew under the radar for at least three years, police said. The investigation also brought down MyFastPass.com, the Twin Cities' largest locally owned prostitution website. Seven of the "Nice Guys" were charged with gross misdemeanor soliciting prostitution this month. Many of the men learned of St. Marie's reputation for luring women to Minnesota through a website for self-described "hobbyists" looking for high-dollar escorts. Police did surveillance in hotel rooms of several johns who were set up by women who worked for St. Marie but cooperated with police once the investigation began. In one recorded conversation, St. Marie paid for a woman's airline tickets and hotel stays in exchange for sex, the charges said. St. Marie didn't prosecute prostitution cases during his 28 years with the Hennepin County attorney's office. He represented social-service agencies and did civil commitments for mentally ill and chemically dependent people. Although he hadn't practiced law since he retired, the state disbarred him this month.
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