Goodine indicted on 7 charges including 1st-degree murder
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF) — A former Chattanooga police officer has been indicted on charges of first-degree murder in the homicide case of Kara Akins.
A Tennessee grand jury indicted Lawrence Foster Goodine on July 2, 2024, on seven total counts.
Goodine faces the following charges.
- Premeditated first-degree murder – 1 count
- Felony first-degree murder – 2 counts
- Aggravated kidnapping – 1 count
- Aggravated burglary – 1 count
- Tampering with evidence – 1 count
- Violation of a no contact order – 1 count
Goodine, who is now 43 years old, was arrested on December 15, 2023, at around 10:45 p.m. He then made his first court appearance on December 22.
Back in January, his case was delayed due to an attorney change.
Then in March, Goodine had a preliminary hearing in court where evidence was presented, which included Ring camera video. The surveillance video from a home on Carr Street, where the incident happened, showed Goodine and Akins together on the night of her death. In the video, Akins is heard saying “stop Lawrence,” and “why are you doing this?”
According to an affidavit, Goodine claimed Akins had taken a narcotic and overdosed. However, an autopsy report revealed Akins died from strangulation and ruled her death as a homicide.
Officers found Akins dead inside a home at 2630 Carr Street on November 29, 2023, the affidavit explains. It also said surveillance video did not show anyone else entering the home until police arrived.
Goodine was previously acquitted of charges that he abused his role of a police officer in 2008.
