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Two had left party on New Year’s Eve to get air, police say
By DANA WILSON
The Columbus Dispatch (Ohio)
DELAWARE, Ohio — A Delaware County firefighter has been charged with kidnapping and raping a woman who authorities say he met at a New Year’s Eve party.
Prosecutors say Brian Goodman, 33, of Delaware, left a party Dec. 31 with a 28-year-old woman, walked her to his house nearby, locked the door behind her and assaulted her.
A county grand jury indicted Goodman this week on four counts of rape and one count of kidnapping. The charges are all first-degree felonies.
Delaware police arrested Goodman on Jan. 2 at the Tri-Township Fire Department, where he’s worked for about five years, Fire Chief Troy Morris said yesterday.
Goodman is one of five full-time firefighters in a close-knit station that includes 25 volunteers, Morris said. They serve Delaware, Brown and Troy townships in the central and northern parts of the county.
Goodman posted a $75,000 bond Jan. 4 and was released from the county jail. He is on paid leave from his job.
William Meeks, Goodman’s attorney, said his client denies the allegations.
“We are conducting our own investigation on the case and we’re going to be preparing for court as thoroughly as possible,” Meeks said.
Morris said he was shocked by the charges. He’s exploring what to do if Goodman runs out of time off.
“We are looking at our options,” he said. “We’re still trying to figure out what’s going on.”
The indictment, filed in Common Pleas Court, alleges that Goodman forced or threatened his victim to engage in sexual conduct. It also alleges that he restrained the woman against her will.
Delaware police initially filed a rape charge in Municipal Court but the case has since been bound over to Common Pleas Court.
An arraignment is scheduled for Feb. 22.
Court records show Goodman has had run-ins with police. He was charged with disorderly conduct in 1993 and again in 2002.
The 2002 case stemmed from a domestic-violence complaint filed by Goodman’s wife and mother of two of his children. He was arrested July 26, 2002, after allegedly punching her in the face and squeezing her neck.
Goodman pleaded no contest to a reduced charge of disorderly conduct and was fined $100 by the court.
Morris said Goodman has no record of disciplinary problems at work.
The circumstances leading to the rape allegations are being investigated, said Delaware police Sgt. John Radabaugh.
Radabaugh said Goodman and the woman were alone at Goodman’s house.
The two didn’t know each other and met through acquaintances at the party, said Traci Beck, spokeswoman for the county prosecutor’s office.
The victim “wanted to get out, get some air,” Beck said. “She was bored, walked with him, and the rest goes from there.”