Woman jailed for assaulting officer

A southern Alberta woman who was caught with a stolen vehicle, and then assaulted a police officer, has received a short jail sentence.

Brooke Delphine Goodwin was sentenced in Lethbridge court of justice to 45 days in custody after pleading guilty to the two criminal offences.

On Jan. 16 police received a report of a stolen 2010 Chevy Cobalt. The Following day an officer noticed the car, covered in snow, parked at a city business. Additional officers arrived and blocked the stolen car from leaving, but the driver fled, prompting a foot chase, ultimately resulting in the suspect’s arrest.

Goodwin, meanwhile, was found in the back of the vehicle, arrested and charged with possession of stolen property under $5,000.

Goodwin was placed into a cell at the police station where, Crown Prosecutor James Rouleau explained, she attempted to hang herself. When an officer rushed in to prevent her suicide, she attacked him.

“(The officer) was then rushed and assaulted while he was intending to assist in preventing that harm from occurring,” Rouleau said.

Rouleau noted that even though the officer was only trying to help Goodwin when she attacked him, it was clear she was in a “difficult state of mind” at the time.

Lethbridge lawyer Vincent Guinan said his 27-year-old client takes responsibility for her actions, but has little memory of the incidents.

“She was obviously under the influence when she was attempting to hang herself, and has very little recollection of assaulting the police officer while in custody, and she is sorry,” Guinan said. “It was a horrible situation where she ended up having to be restrained for hours...while withdrawing from the various substances that were in her body.”

Although Goodwin - who has a criminal record, which includes convictions for assaulting a peace officer, thefts, flight from police, trafficking in stolen property and firearm-related offence - was given credit for time served in pre-disposition custody, which completes here sentence, she remains in custody on other charges, including possession of stolen property, possession of a false credit card, and multiple counts of possession of identity information belonging to other people.