EX-HPD cop faces new indictments in deadly home raid
A grand jury has reindicted former Houston police officer Gerald Goines on two felony murder charges related to the deadly Harding Street raid that a judge abruptly quashed in March, according to his lawyer and an official with the Harris County District Attorney’s Office.
The grand jury on Wednesday signed off on the reindictments, prompting prosecutors and one of Goines’ lawyers to descend on the 482nd District Court to discuss bail and other matters. Goines’ legal team argued that the original indictments, which used tampering with a government record as the underlying felony, were flawed and unconstitutional.
“We look forward to getting justice for the victim’s families,” said Joe Stinebaker, a district attorney’s office spokesperson.
One of Goines’ lawyers, Nicole Deborde Hochglaube, said she had not seen the indictments following the grand jury’s decision and did not yet know how they vary from the earlier charges.
Goines will be re-arraigned in the coming days as a formality, she said.
Judge Veronica Nelson on March 26 quashed the indictments, effectively dismissing them, related to the deaths of Dennis Tuttle and Rhogena Nicholas, forcing the prosecution to decide whether to appeal her decision or turn to a grand jury for a reindictment. An appeal of the ruling could have put the scheduled June trial on hold until 2025, when a new district attorney takes over.
The original indictment from 2019 accused Goines of lying in a search warrant that was used to execute a “no knock” search warrant on the couple’s Pecan Park home. A gunbattle ensued between officers, Goines included, and the homeowners, who were killed.
The office of District Attorney Kim Ogg, who lost her Democratic primary, called the judge’s ruling “another delay tactic by the defense” and pledged to continue the prosecution.
Judge Nelson took over Goines’ cases and other charges stemming from the Harding Street raid aftermath earlier this year following the suspension of a jurist charged with misdemeanor assault in Galveston County.