HOUSTON, Texas — The murder trial of former Houston police narcotics officer Gerald Goines is now in the hands of a jury. Goines is charged in the 2019 shooting deaths of Dennis Tuttle and Rhogena Nicholas.
The couple was gunned down during a botched drug raid at their Harding Street home. Investigators said Goines lied to get the "no-knock" warrant and portrayed the couple as dangerous heroin dealers.
Four HPD officers, including Goines, were shot and wounded after bursting into their modest home. Officers returned fire, killing the couple and their dog.
Jurors heard closing arguments Tuesday morning before beginning deliberations.
“Being entrusted to protect our community as a police officer does not give you license to violate someone and their rights simply because you think that they have or deal drugs," Assistant District Attorney Keaton Forcht told the jury.
The defense pointed out that drug evidence was found inside the home along with several weapons, some of which were shown to the jury.
“This business about the officers just burst in there and mowed people down, that’s the narrative in the media – but now you know you got to see the facts and that’s not what the case is about at all – that’s not what the evidence showed at all," argued defense attorney George "Mac" Secrest.
Evidence includes bodycam video of Harding Street raid
Jurors have to sort through two weeks of testimony as they work through reaching a verdict.
"You better believe the jury will struggle with different areas of the law in reaching a determination in this case – I think we can all anticipate a couple of days deliberation for them," KHOU 11 legal analyst Carmen Roe said.
Last week, jurors saw dramatic body camera video from the deadly raid. That graphic video included dozens of gunshots, shouts and groans.
Forcht said officers immediately fired their guns upon entering the home. Nicholas, who had cancer, had been sitting on her couch watching television while her husband was asleep in a bedroom, he said.
Defense attorney Nicole DeBorde admitted that Goines lied about the warrant but said Nicholas and Tuttle were responsible for their own deaths. She said Tuttle fired at officers who had identified themselves after coming in.
Investigators testified that they only found small amounts of marijuana and cocaine in the house and no evidence of a major drug operation.
Sarah Sanchez, a neighbor and friend, testified that the victims kept to themselves, had various health problems, lived on a fixed income and loved their dogs.
RELATED: Jurors in ex-HPD officer Gerald Goines murder trial see bodycam of botched Harding Street raid
Goines is also on trial for tampering with a government document. Experts said it's the first case ever where tampering with a government instrument [the search warrant] is an underlying charge in a felony murder case.
Family members of both the victims and defendant were part of a standing-room-only crowd that packed the small courtroom for closing arguments.
Harding Street fallout
A massive investigation discovered that dozens of defendants were sent to prison on drug charges based on what prosecutors called "lies" by "dirty cops," including Goines.
A dozen officers tied to the narcotics squad that carried out the raid, including Goines, were later indicted on other charges following a corruption probe. A judge in June dismissed charges against some of them.
Since the raid, prosecutors have reviewed thousands of cases handled by the narcotics unit.
The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals has overturned at least 22 convictions linked to Goines, who also faces federal charges.
One of the other cases tied to Goines that remains under scrutiny is his 2004 drug arrest in Houston of George Floyd, whose 2020 death at the hands of a Minnesota police officer sparked a nationwide reckoning on racism in policing. A Texas board in 2022 declined a request that Floyd be granted a posthumous pardon for his drug conviction stemming from his arrest by Goines.
