Mississippi Man Threatens Judge, Feds: Guilty Plea

FAYETTEVILLE, AR – Joshua Matthew Goodin, a 40-year-old from Jackson, Mississippi, has confessed to a chilling plot: threatening to assassinate a United States Judge and a federal law enforcement officer. The guilty plea, entered Monday, July 1, 2024, before United States Magistrate Judge Christy D. Comstock, lays bare a rage fueled by a recent federal gun charge.

According to court documents, Goodin’s threats weren’t whispered in the shadows. While incarcerated at the Washington County Detention Facility in Fayetteville, Arkansas, on or about July 5, 2022, he penned two venomous letters to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Jackson, Mississippi. One letter, a full-throated declaration of intent, read, “I swear I’m going to kill you all, I’m gonna blow your f****** office up. …Your gonna die I promise nothing or no one will stop me.” The language is blunt, the promise of violence explicit.

The second letter ratcheted up the personal nature of the threats. Goodin specifically targeted the District Attorney—name redacted—who prosecuted his gun case, vowing retribution. “The b**** ass d.a. … he talked real bad about me. For that he will pay with his life, him and the judge don’t understand who I really am,” he wrote. This wasn’t just generalized anger; it was a calculated promise of lethal revenge.

United States Attorney Jonathan D. Ross for the Eastern District of Arkansas announced the guilty plea, signaling a swift prosecution of the case. Goodin was initially indicted on July 25, 2023, and now faces a sentencing hearing before United States District Judge Stephen R. Bough of the Western District of Missouri. The date of that hearing has not yet been set.

The stakes are high. Threatening a federal official carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, alongside up to three years of supervised release, and a hefty fine of up to $250,000. This isn’t a slap on the wrist; it’s a serious federal felony.

The investigation, a joint effort by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the U.S. Marshals Service, underscores the commitment of federal agencies to protecting their personnel from threats of violence. Goodin’s case serves as a stark reminder that attempts to intimidate or harm those who uphold the law will be met with the full force of the justice system. This is a clear message: threats against federal officials will not be tolerated.