A former Houston cop is on trial for the deaths of two people that occurred during a raid on their home in 2019.
According to prosecutors, Gerald Goines lied on the application for a search warrant by calling the couple violent drug dealers. Even Goines’ lawyer said her client told lies in order to get the search warrant, but that doesn’t mean he should be convicted for murder. He has pleaded not guilty.
What happened to Dennis Tuttle, 59, and his wife, Rhogena Nicholas, 58, is a tortured tale with layers of deception. Prosecutor Keaton Forcht said it all started when a neighbor of the couple called 911 and falsely claimed that her daughter had obtained heroin from Tuttle and Nicholas. This neighbor was later convicted in federal court for these lies.
This falsehood directed local police attention to the couple. Former officer Gerald Goines lied on the search warrant in characterizing them as dangerous drug peddlers, and a judge granted a “no-knock” warrant. Goines lied again, saying that an informant had bought heroin from the couple. He then changed his story later, claiming that he himself had bought drugs from the couple, but prosecutors say that, too, was a lie.
A no-knock warrant allows cops to burst into a home with guns drawn without announcing themselves first. That’s just what happened. A number of police officers entered the couple’s home, and according to prosecutor Forcht, immediately opened fire. Rhogena Nicholas, who was battling cancer, was sitting in the living room watching television while her husband was sleeping in the bedroom. Officers shot and killed the couple and their dog, apparently believing what they had been told; that the couple were dangerous and likely to become violent. However, Dennis Tuttle had opened fire on the cops first.
In the end, cops found only small amounts of marijuana and cocaine.
Goines’ defense lawyer, Nicole DeBorde, confirmed that her client lied on the warrant, but said he is not responsible for the deaths and that her client had been “overcharged” by the prosecution.
Goines’ lawyer, Nicole DeBorde, admitted to jurors that her client had lied to obtain the search warrant but, she said, prosecutors had overcharged him for his actions.
She maintained that Tuttle and Nicholas were responsible for their own deaths for firing on the cops even after they’d identified themselves, and for trying to get a gun away from one officer.
