Document text
Loose belt leads to gun charge Eric Tyrone Goodson Monday Feb 26, 2018 at 3:53 PM Feb 26, 2018 at 3:53 PM Vickie Aldous Mail Tribune @VickieAldous A Phoenix man has been charged with being a felon in possession of a weapon and other crimes after a sharp-eyed deputy noticed the man's belt was loose, retraced the man's steps and found a handgun and holster he allegedly dumped while trying to run away. Gun holsters are frequently equipped with loops or brackets so they can be threaded onto a person's belt. Eric Tyrone Goodson, 37, faces charges of being a felon in possession of a weapon, two counts of fleeing or attempting to elude an officer, reckless driving, two counts of recklessly endangering another person and methamphetamine possession. He entered not guilty pleas to the charges Monday in Jackson County Circuit Court and has a pre-trial conference scheduled for March 12. Goodson was being held Monday in the Jackson County Jail on $20,000 bail. On the night of Feb. 8, a Jackson County sheriff's deputy conducted a traffic stop near the intersection of Table Rock Road and Orr Drive north of Central Point. The deputy went up to the male driver of the vehicle and asked for identification, but the man allegedly sped off, according to a probable cause affidavit. With lights flashing and siren on, the deputy pursued the man, who allegedly drove into the oncoming lane at varying rates of speed with two passengers inside, the affidavit said. The driver allegedly stopped suddenly and ran from the vehicle on foot, but was caught after a brief foot pursuit, the affidavit said. "Once in custody, I noticed Goodson's belt was completely undone and hanging from his waist," the deputy alleged in the affidavit. "At the initial time of stop, prior to the elude, Goodson's belt was completely fastened and on his waist. I retraced our path and located a small-caliber handgun in a holster. This was located in the exact path in which Goodson ran. Goodson denied all knowledge of the handgun." "During an inventory of the vehicle, an additional handgun magazine was located as well as ammunition for the handgun," the deputy wrote in the affidavit. "Both the magazine and ammunition were for the handgun I located." A scale with a white crystal substance was also located in the vehicle, the affidavit said. In December 2017, Goodson pleaded guilty to two counts of first-degree theft, court records show. According to an affidavit in that case, he cashed a stolen check for $1,500. In another case, he also pleaded guilty in December 2017 to first-degree theft and methamphetamine possession after stealing more than $1,000 in cash, according to court documents. He has a pending second-degree criminal mischief case in Josephine County for allegedly punching the window of another person's vehicle, shattering the window, according to court documents. — Reach staff reporter Vickie Aldous at 541-776-4486 or [email protected]. Follow her at www.twitter.com/VickieAldous.