Kansas Prosecutor Gets New Trial Date: Extortion

A new trial date has been set for a Kansas prosecutor who is facing federal charges related to favors and money he is accused of receiving at a Galena strip club.^[1] Cherokee County Attorney Michael Goodrich, who has resigned effective Dec. 1, was supposed to go to trial on Nov. 27 in U.S. District Court in Wichita.^[2] His new federal criminal defense attorney, Michael Hepperly, requested the trial date be pushed back because he had recently taken over the case.^[3]

U.S. District Judge Monti Belot has set a new trial date for Feb. 5 to give Hepperly more time to review evidence and discuss possible plea negotiations.^[4]

Goodrich is charged with two counts of extortion, one count of wire fraud and one count of intimidating a witness.^[5] He has pleaded not guilty to the charges; his indictment alleges that Goodrich received money and favors from the owner and employees of Sensations Gentleman's Club from Jan. 1, 2005, to September 2007 in return for favorable legal treatment.^[6] The indictment also accuses Goodrich of dismissing a traffic ticket club manager Tom Dekeyser received March 29, without Dekeyser paying any fines and costs.^[7]

If convicted, Goodrich could face a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine on each of the extortion and wire fraud charges, and up to 10 years in prison and a fine of $250,000 on the intimidation charge, according to the U.S. attorney's office.^[8]

Federal criminal attorney Douglas McNabb has also previously discussed extortion in his blog, which can be found here; he has also discussed the federal crime of wire fraud which can be found here.

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^[1] AP Staff, Trial pushed back to February for prosecutor accused of extortion, Associated Press Newswire, November 13, 2007, available at LEXIS, News Library, Wire News Services File.
^[2] Id.
^[3] Id.
^[4] Id.
^[5] Id.
^[6] Id.
^[7] Id.
^[8] Id.