Thursday, April 22, 2004

A third man recently recorded his account of a jail cell conversation with Lucas Goodrum, in which the 22-year-old Scottsville man reportedly admitted to raping and beating 18-year-old Western Kentucky University freshman Katie Autry. Autry, of Pellville, died May 7 of third- and fourth-degree burns resulting from a fire allegedly set in her Hugh Poland Hall dorm room on May 4.In a March 30 videotaped interview with Richard Mealer of Bowling Green and a detective from the Warren County Commonwealths Attorneys Office, Mealer, in jail at the time on a misdemeanor assault charge, recounted a one-on-one conversation with Goodrum while the two were incarcerated in December. The two were in the Warren County Regional Jail medical cell, recovering from injuries. Mealer, 30, said Goodrum was there with a cast on his left arm, and jail records show Goodrum was in the medical cell with a hand injury from Dec. 30 to Jan. 1. Jail records show Mealer stayed in the medical cell during his entire incarceration, from Dec. 28 to Jan. 5.He had told me specifically that he was one of the men who had raped and beaten the young woman, Mealer said in the interview. I told him, Why are you telling me this? I dont want to hear this. This is none of my business. I guess he thought he could trust me not to say nothing to nobody, but people who are going to sit there and say things like that needs to be put away. Goodrums defense attorney, David Broderick, put little stock in Mealers interview. Of course, this is the guy who says he apparently heard something in the jail in January, didnt give a statement until March 30, and I got a copy of it April 16, he said. My reaction is, if somebody got information like this, why would they wait three months to tell anybody? I seriously doubt the truthfulness of it and the capability of this man to make a truthful statement. Broderick also expressed frustration that he received a tape of the interview 17 days after it was recorded. He said he received the tape at about 4:30 p.m. on April 16, just as his deadline expired to file motions to be heard by Special Judge Thomas Castlen of Owensboro. We wanted to look at all the information presented to us, First Assistant Commonwealths Attorney Chris Cohron said, defending his offices actions. We had the law enforcement officials investigate it to confirm the veracity of (Mealers) statements, and then we promptly turned it over to (Broderick).Prosecutors were seeking the death penalty against Goodrum and co-defendant Stephen Soules, arrested last May on murder, rape, sodomy and arson charges. Soules pleaded guilty March 23 and received a sentence of life without parole in exchange for testimony against Goodrum, who will go on trial July 30.In late May, former Warren County Regional Jail inmates Terry Campbell and Micah West recorded their accounts of separate conversations with Goodrum in the jail. Prosecutors will use those interviews, along with Mealers, as evidence against Goodrum. Campbell was released on a surety bond May 16 on a charge of first-degree assault. West was released on a surety bond May 12 on a charge of second-degree forgery. Mealer came forward voluntarily last month, having been released from jail Jan. 5 after receiving a court-ordered, 12-month sentence, probated for a year, on a misdemeanor charge of fourth-degree assault. Mealer said Goodrum denied involvement in the arson. He also claimed Goodrum said a black man was also in Autrys room at the time, but he did not mention a name. Mealer said about six other people were in the medical cell and, just after admitting guilt in the conversation, Goodrum was telling everyone else in the jail cell he was not there (at the crime scene).Mealer said he did not remember Goodrums name from their time together in the jail cell. He described his cellmate as about 6 feet 6 inches tall with reddish-blonde hair, and said he recognized Goodrum on television. I dont pay any attention to nobodys names because I really dont care who they are, what theyve done or where theyre from, Mealer said on the videotape. All I know is that he had given me that information and Im going to be sticking to it. Daily News ·813 College St. ·PO Box 90012 ·Bowling Green, KY ·42102 ·270-781-1700