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HOUSTON (CN) — A jury on Wednesday found former Houston police officer Gerald Goines guilty on two counts of felony murder for his role in the deaths of Dennis Tuttle and Rhogena Nicholas, the two homeowners shot and killed in the botched Harding Street raid in January 2019.
After two weeks of trial, the jury deliberated for just over seven hours, three on Tuesday afternoon after the long closing arguments and four on Wednesday. The jury foreperson read the verdict to a packed courtroom just after 2:15 p.m. Wednesday.
“In cause number 1862491, we the jury find the defendant, Gerald Goines, guilty of felony murder as charged, signed by the foreperson of the jury. Cause number 1862492, we the jury find the defendant, Gerald Goines, guilty of felony murder as charged, signed by the foreperson of the jury.”
Goines lied to the judge prior to the 2019 raid to obtain the no-knock search warrant, telling the judge in an affidavit that he paid a confidential informant to purchase heroin at Tuttle and Nicholas’s home. But no such informant ever existed, and no heroin was found at the home.
Goines’ lie on that affidavit served as the basis for the underlying charge of tampering with a government document.
Prosecutors then pushed for the higher charge of felony murder, arguing that Goines’ initial felony made him responsible for the raid and subsequent deaths. As prosecutor Keaton Forcht told the jury in opening arguments. “But for Gerald Goines lying on that search warrant, none of this is happening,”
Goines’ defense conceded that he had lied, but argued that prosecutors were overcharging the former officer with the two counts of felony murder. In both closing and opening arguments, his lawyers stated that while the jury may be upset with Goines for his actions, finding him guilty of felony murder was not the proper course of action.
The jury will return Thursday morning for the penalty phase of the trial, where prosecutors and defense will now debate the proper sentence for Goines.
Texas law categorizes felony murder alongside a directly committed murder, with both set as first-degree felonies. As such, Goines faces a minimum prison sentence of five years, with a maximum sentence of 99 years or life in prison, plus a fine of up to $10,000.
Prosecutors and defense attorneys did not make any statements after the verdict, citing the judge’s gag order.
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