Baseline Killer - Arrest of Goudeau As A Suspect

Arrest of Goudeau As A Suspect

On September 4, 2006, Phoenix police announced an arrest in connection with a sexual assault previously linked to the Baseline Killer while serving a search warrant at 28th Street and Pinchot Avenue.

Police arrested Mark Goudeau, an African American construction worker living in Phoenix. Goudeau was charged with attacking two sisters on September 20, 2005 while they were walking home from a Phoenix city park at night. Goudeau was linked to the attack by matching DNA evidence found on the victims. Goudeau was tried and convicted on all 19 counts connected to the assault and all murders related to the Baseline Killer investigation.

During the trial, the two sisters gave testimony that Goudeau suddenly approached them with a gun in his hand. They were forced into nearby bushes and told to remove their clothing. The victims said Goudeau sexually assaulted the younger sister as he pointed his gun at the other sister's pregnant abdomen. Prosecutors said Goudeau warned the women not to look at his face during the assault. They also stated he rubbed dirt on one of the women to remove saliva traces, and wore a condom during the assault on one of the sisters.

Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas stated he would seek the death penalty on Goudeau if he is convicted in the murder trial.

Goudeau’s wife, Wendy Carr, told The Associated Press that police arrested the wrong man; “My husband is innocent,” Carr reportedly said in a telephone interview. “This is a huge miscarriage of justice. And they have an innocent man in prison. This is all a mistake. He shouldn’t be in prison for something he didn’t do.” Goudeau is described as a loving husband and exceptionally friendly neighbor who took meticulous care of his lawn. Friends and family deny any possibility that Goudeau could be the Baseline Killer, saying he was framed by Phoenix police who were desperate for a suspect.

According to Arizona prison officials, Goudeau is an ex-convict who served 13 years of a 21-year sentence for aggravated assault, including beating a woman's head with a barbell, and armed robbery. Goudeau pleaded down to the charge of aggravated assault, but he had also originally been charged with rape and kidnapping. The rape charge was dropped, as there was no physical evidence of rape.

On December 7, 2006, three months after Goudeau was arrested, Phoenix police said they were confident he was responsible for the full series of murders, rapes and robberies that terrorized the city for 13 months. Goudeau is believed to have committed nine murders, one more than originally attributed to the Baseline Killer (the murder of Sophia Nunez on April 10, 2006). Police say ballistics, DNA and circumstantial evidence prove that Goudeau is the Baseline Killer. During the trial, a forensic specialist with the Department of Public Safety told the Maricopa County Superior Court that Goudeau was undoubtedly the source of male DNA found on the left breast of one of the victims with it being 360 trillion times more likely that DNA collected from the crime scene came from Goudeau rather than an unrelated African-American man. Police recommended that prosecutors charge Goudeau with 74 crimes, including nine counts of first-degree murder, five counts of sexual assault, three counts of attempted sexual assault, 10 counts of kidnapping, 12 counts of armed robbery, four counts of attempted armed robbery, three counts of sexual abuse, nine counts of sexual conduct with a minor, 13 counts of aggravated assault, and three counts of indecent exposure. On October 31, 2011, Mark Goudeau was found guilty of a total of 67 felony counts, including all murders attributed to the Baseline Killer. On November 30, 2011, Goudeau was sentenced to death while serving a 438 year sentence for rape and assault.