🚨THE BADGE, THE ALLEGATIONS & THE CONVICTION‼️

GEORGIA— A former East Point, Georgia, police sergeant is now serving life in prison plus 20 years.

A Fulton County jury convicted him of 10 felony counts arising from allegations that he used his position, badge and patrol vehicle to sexually assault women and a teenage girl.

Richard Gooddine was convicted on September 8, 2026, and sentenced on September 22.

His convictions included aggravated sexual battery, child molestation, enticing a child for indecent purposes, and two counts involving threatening or causing harm to hinder or delay testimony or prosecution. 

The case, however, did not begin in 2026.

It stretches back more than a decade and includes allegations from multiple women and girls, internal-affairs investigations, a 2022 trial that ended with acquittals and a mistrial, appellate litigation, and ultimately a 2026 retrial.

THE 15-YEAR-OLD GIRL

The case that ultimately resulted in Gooddine’s most serious convictions began in 2018.

According to trial evidence, Gooddine encountered a group of teenagers at a park while working as an East Point police officer. The teenagers were allegedly out after curfew.

A friend testified that Gooddine separated the 15-year-old from the group and put her into his patrol vehicle.

When a friend asked to accompany them, Gooddine refused, saying he was taking the girl home.

Prosecutors said he instead drove the teenager around for hours before taking her to an apartment complex, where they alleged he sexually assaulted her inside the police SUV. 

The prosecution also presented evidence that Gooddine failed to follow department procedures concerning the patrol vehicle’s mileage while transporting the teenager.

Former East Point Police Chief Tommy Gardner testified that Gooddine violated departmental policies. 

THEN CAME THE HOSPITAL

After the teenager returned home, her mother took her to a hospital for a sexual-assault examination.

According to testimony, Gooddine arrived at the same hospital less than 10 minutes after the teenager.

He was still in uniform.

A hospital charge nurse testified that Gooddine became agitated and intimidating, refused to identify himself and questioned staff about their relationship with police.

Surveillance video from the hospital was presented to the jury.

The prosecution argued that Gooddine’s appearance at the hospital was part of an effort to intimidate the victim and interfere with the investigation.

Those allegations ultimately contributed to the witness-interference convictions in the 2026 case.

THE FORENSIC EVIDENCE

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation examined Gooddine’s patrol SUV.

Investigators collected swabs from high-touch areas and stains in the back seat.

A GBI analyst testified that the DNA evidence from the sexual-assault examination was inconclusive because of the low quantity of DNA available.

An emergency-room physician testified that sexual assault does not necessarily result in visible physical injuries. 

The case therefore did not depend upon a single piece of forensic evidence.

The jury heard testimony from the alleged victim, witnesses, medical personnel, law-enforcement witnesses and investigators, along with surveillance footage and other evidence.

The jury ultimately convicted Gooddine on 10 felony counts.

THERE WERE OTHER ALLEGATIONS

The 15-year-old was not the first person to make allegations against Gooddine.

The Georgia Court of Appeals documented that five different women had accused him of inappropriate touching or sexual misconduct, leading to numerous criminal charges. 

2011 — Amiracle Bullard

Amiracle Bullard publicly identified herself as the teenager who said she encountered Gooddine when she was 14 years old.

She told investigators and reporters that Gooddine initially presented himself as someone who wanted to mentor her after helping return her to her father.

She later alleged that he sexually assaulted her.

A sexual-battery and child-molestation case was brought in 2011, but the Fulton County District Attorney’s Office declined prosecution at that time, saying prosecution was not considered in the girl’s best interest. 

This allegation did not result in a 2011 conviction.

2016 — Rosa Woodard

Rosa Woodard publicly accused Gooddine of inappropriate sexual contact during a traffic-related arrest.

She said she was handcuffed and being placed into a patrol vehicle when Gooddine touched her breasts.

Woodard also alleged that Gooddine told her he was above the law and could get away with what he was doing.

East Point’s Internal Affairs Division investigated the complaint and closed it as unfounded, stating that investigators did not find enough evidence to support the allegation.

Records also showed Gooddine was not wearing a body camera during the encounter. 

Woodard later became one of the women involved in federal civil litigation concerning Gooddine and the City of East Point.

2016/2017 — Shoplifting arrest

Another woman alleged that Gooddine sexually assaulted her after she was arrested in connection with shoplifting.

According to trial reporting, she said Gooddine searched her while she was handcuffed and touched her inappropriately.

She reported the incident to another officer.

The allegation was investigated internally, but the department did not sustain the complaint.

Reporting also described the use of a polygraph and available surveillance footage during that investigation. 

2018 — Another arrest-related allegation

Trial evidence also included testimony from another woman who alleged that Gooddine touched her inappropriately during a February 2018 arrest.

The woman testified that she wanted to get away from him after the encounter. 

THE FIRST TRIAL DID NOT END THE CASE

Gooddine’s first criminal trial occurred in 2022.

The jury acquitted him of seven charges but could not reach unanimous verdicts on 10 other charges, resulting in a mistrial on those unresolved counts. 

The 2026 conviction was not simply the continuation of an uninterrupted conviction from 2018. Gooddine had previously been acquitted on some charges, while other charges remained unresolved.

THE 2025 APPEALS COURT DECISION

Before the retrial, Gooddine challenged the indictment.

In June 2025, the Georgia Court of Appeals issued Gooddine v. State, Case No. A25A0295.

The appellate court held that certain charges had to be dismissed because of a statutory grand-jury notice issue.

Specifically, the court required dismissal of one child-molestation count and two counts alleging sexual assault by a law-enforcement officer, while otherwise affirming the trial court’s ruling. 

That decision shaped the charges that could proceed into the retrial.

SEPTEMBER 2026: THE RETRIAL

The retrial finally brought the case to a jury again.

On September 8, 2026, the Fulton County jury found Gooddine guilty of 10 felony counts. 

The convictions included:

- Aggravated sexual battery

- Child molestation

- Enticing a child for indecent purposes.

- Two counts involving threatening or causing harm to hinder or delay testimony or prosecution.

The prosecution argued that Gooddine selected vulnerable people and used the authority of his badge to control them.

The defense disputed the prosecution’s interpretation of the evidence and argued that the state had not proved its case beyond a reasonable doubt. 

The jury ultimately rejected the defense position and returned guilty verdicts on all 10 counts tried in the retrial. 

LIFE IN PRISON + 20 YEARS

On September 22, 2026, Gooddine was sentenced to:

LIFE IN PRISON + 20 YEARS

During sentencing, victims

addressed the court about the long-term effects they said the assaults had on their lives.

The prosecution requested the maximum sentence.

Defense attorneys requested 25 years and presented character letters and arguments concerning Gooddine’s conduct while on bond.

The judge ultimately imposed life plus 20 years. 

The Richard Gooddine case illustrates why allegations involving people in positions of authority can require careful examination over time.

The documented history includes:

2011 — Allegation involving a 14-year-old; prosecution declined. 

2016 — Woodard reports an inappropriate-touching allegation; Internal Affairs closes the complaint as unfounded. 

2016–2017 — Additional arrest-related allegations emerge. 

2018 — A 15-year-old alleges sexual assault after being separated from her friends by Gooddine while he was working as an officer. Gooddine is fired. 

2022 — First criminal trial: seven acquittals and 10 unresolved counts resulting in a mistrial. 

2025 — Georgia Court of Appeals orders dismissal of three counts while leaving other charges available for further proceedings. 

September 8, 2026 — Retrial jury convicts Gooddine on 10 felony counts. 

September 22, 2026 — Gooddine receives a sentence of life imprisonment plus 20 years. 

That entire history matters.

For victims and families, accountability can take years.

For children, teenagers and vulnerable people, prevention begins with taking concerns seriously.

And for communities, public trust depends upon institutions being willing to examine allegations involving those entrusted with authority.

In this case, the public record shows a complicated history in which later jury ultimately convicted Gooddine of 10 felony counts.