Euthanasia, Ok by Terri's judge in Florida. Ok by Washington County Circuit Judge Thomas W. Kohl Fw: Dad drops plea deal in baby's (euthanasia) death

January 3, 2005

- Nancy Valko

nv333

Monday, January 03, 2005 10:43 AM

Dad drops plea deal in baby's (euthanasia) death

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Monday, January 03, 2005 8:13 AM

"mercy" killing defense

Dad drops plea deal in baby's death

Darren Goodrich confessed to police but will take the chance a jury has sympathy for the family's situation

Monday, January 03, 2005 HOLLY DANKS

HILLSBORO -- A former Beaverton man is betting his life that a jury will find he killed his ill daughter out of compassion for her and his family.

Darren Scott Goodrich, 41, has turned down an offer to plead guilty to first-degree manslaughter and serve 10 years in prison for killing his 3-month-old daughter. The Washington County district attorney's office withdrew the offer Thursday, when Goodrich fired his second set of court-appointed attorneys.

Instead of taking the plea deal, Goodrich will go to trial for aggravated murder -- where he faces the death penalty if convicted of intentionally killing a child younger than 14. The least he could get if found guilty is life in prison with parole possible only after 30 years.

A date for his trial, which could start as late as 2006, will be set Friday.

Goodrich told Washington County Circuit Judge Thomas W. Kohl that it was a big decision, but he was looking at "10 years of my life" if he took the plea deal. Manslaughter is defined as recklessly killing someone with extreme indifference to the value of human life.

Goodrich will rely on Ray Bassel, his newly appointed defense attorney, to persuade a jury to have sympathy because Goodrich's baby, Olivian Isis Nicole Goodrich, had serious health problems.

"It's a sad case," Bassel said.

Goodrich and his wife, Melanie Gaige, told police that Olivian had been in and out of the hospital after her birth on Feb. 24, 2003. After the last stay, they took her home to die.

The baby was born with cytomegalovirus, which caused her to have seizures, breathing problems and eating difficulties. A nurse visited their apartment once a week.

Though Olivian wasn't developing like a normal 3-month-old and was likely to die from complications of the disorder, neurologists told Beaverton police Detective Dan Kelly that her death was not imminent. Kelly said the girl could have lived as long as two years.

According to court documents, Goodrich was having problems dealing with the child's health. He told Kelly that he planned to take off for Las Vegas and leave his wife and their 2-year-old daughter with Olivian.

Then, Goodrich told Kelly, he thought better of leaving his family, "waiting for her to die."

Still, Goodrich said he didn't like that he, his wife and their older daughter were becoming attached to the sick baby. One day, he pinched Olivian's nose closed and held her lip to try to suffocate her, but could not bring himself to do it, court papers said.

But on May 30, 2003, Goodrich told his wife he was going to "help Olivian." He sent Gaige and the elder daughter to the liquor store for rum. They returned 15 minutes later to find the baby dead.

During a release hearing a year ago, prosecutors played a tape recording of Goodrich's confession to police. He said he put his hand over the infant's face and held it there for two minutes, until she quit breathing.

A doctor signed Olivian's death certificate listing the causes of death as seizures, feeding problems, congenital cerebral cytomegalovirus infection and significant developmental delay. Authorities did not suspect foul play, and the baby's body was cremated.

A short time later, the family moved to Salem. Goodrich was arrested there on July 9, 2003, on fourth-degree assault charges that he choked his wife and kicked her out of a car after a night of bar-hopping.

When he was arrested, Goodrich told Marion County sheriff's deputies that he had something to get off his chest. He admitted killing the baby six weeks earlier in Beaverton and has been in the Washington County Jail without bail for the past 11/2 years.

Holly Danks: 503-221-4377; hollydanks