Former policeman found guilty for felony murder in Houston, Texas
HOUSTON, Texas. (WCBI) – A former Houston, Texas Police officer has been found guilty of felony murder in the death of a former Macon resident and her husband.
Gerald Goines was charged with two counts of felony murder 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.
Rhogena Nicholas was born in Ackerman and raised in Macon.
Goines was also charged with one count of tampering with a government document for lying about information to get the “no-knock” warrant.
Prosecutors said Goines falsely claimed that an informant had bought heroin at the couple’s home from a man with a gun.
A Texas Ranger who investigated the shooting, testified officers fired first when they entered the home and shot the couple’s dog.
Rhogena Nicholas, who had cancer, had been sitting on her couch watching television while her husband was asleep in a bedroom.
The Ranger said the gunfire and Nicholas screaming at officers likely resulted in Tuttle coming from his bedroom and opening fire at the officers.
A jury took less than 8 hours of deliberation to find Goines guilty on all three charges.
He will be sentenced at a later date.
