After pleading guilty to sexually abusing a 3-week-old baby and two young girls, a serial child molester likely thought he would receive a lighter sentence. Unfortunately, he wasn’t prepared for the judge’s next few words, which sent him collapsing to the floor.
When 45-year-old Thomas Goodman of Warwick, Rhode Island, pleaded guilty to sexually abusing a newborn baby and two other children, he was prepared to serve some prison time. What he didn’t expect was for the judge to consider the likelihood that Goodman will re-offend, placing the burden of community safety on the court.
Far too often we hear about abusers and rapists receiving probation or suspended sentences despite admitting to heinous crimes against children. Unfortunately, this typically comes about when the prosecution is compelled to offer the accused a more lenient sentence in exchange for a guilty plea that might not otherwise come to fruition, allowing the perpetrator to evade justice entirely.
After pleading guilty to repeatedly sexually abusing a 3-week-old baby and a pair of 6-year-old girls, Goodman fainted in the courtroom upon hearing the judge sentencing him to 260 years in prison, the Providence Journal reports. At the request of his attorney, Goodman had expected to receive around 22 years in prison, which could easily result in an early release based on good behavior. Upon hearing his bicentennial sentence, however, he fell forward into the table in the middle of the courtroom.
Even the prosecution was surprised by the sentence, having requested just 100 years for Goodman. Still, U.S. District Court Judge John J. McConnell handed down a punishment 160 years longer than they had sought. He explained that it was his duty as a justice to ensure that Goodman doesn’t hurt a child ever again.
“The only way I can do that is to be sure you never get out of prison again,” McConnell said, adding, “I have no assurances you will stop.”
Continued…
Approved ~ MJM
