Widow Vows To Fight LAPD After False Accusation Of Husband's Murder
WOODLAND HILLS (CBSLA.com) — A Woodland Hills widow has vowed that she will continue to fight the LAPD after she was falsely accused of killing her husband.
Lois Goodman says a judge's decision to throw her case out is not the end of the matter, saying "they've ruined my life."
While criminal charges against her have been dropped, Goodman says she continues to suffer after having been wrongly accused of killing her husband.
Goodman was arrested by the LAPD, who said the U.S. Open Tennis umpire bludgeoned her husband, Alan Goodman, 80, with a coffee mug in their home.
In reality, Alan had come out of their bedroom, holding the coffee mug in his hand. He then walked down the stairs and fell, smashing his head against the mug as a result.
"I think of it constantly going up and down those stairs, but this is our home, this is where I have my memories, my life," Goodman said.
The charges were eventually dropped, but Goodman says the damage of the accusation was enough.
"I just know that I was treated unfairly, and it breaks my heart," Goodman shared.
Goodman filed a lawsuit against the LAPD and the Los Angeles County Coroner's office for her false arrest and what she called her malicious prosecution. A judge threw her suit out last week, but Goodman's attorney says they will file an appeal.
"You can't give them license to take an innocent grandmother and put her through the ringer. They haven't even apologized to her," attorney Robert Sheahen said.
Goodman says she spent more than $400,000 defending herself against the charges, and now says she is struggling with a limited income.
"I've lost a lot of work," Goodman said. "There will always be people who think I killed my husband, but that can't be farther from the truth. I think I'll always try to grieve for him. I'll miss him. We were married almost 50 years."
Goodman says that she still does not have access to her husband's life insurance policy, because the LAPD contends this is still an open investigation. This could not be confirmed by the LAPD.
