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The retrial of former New York State Trooper Christopher Baldner begins Tuesday (February 17) in Kingston, with jury selection marking the start of proceedings in a case stemming from a fatal 2020 highway pursuit.
Baldner, 53, faces a second-degree manslaughter charge in connection with the death of 11-year-old Monica Goods, who was killed when her father's minivan crashed during a high-speed chase on the New York State Thruway in December 2020. The former trooper was previously acquitted of murder and reckless endangerment charges in November, but the jury deadlocked on the manslaughter count, resulting in a mistrial on that charge.
The incident occurred on December 22, 2020, when Baldner, then a 19-year veteran with the state police, pulled over Tristin Goods for allegedly speeding on the Thruway near Exit 19 in the town of Ulster. According to testimony from the first trial, the traffic stop escalated into a heated argument when Goods refused to provide his license and registration, claiming to be a "sovereign citizen" not subject to traffic laws.
Prosecutors from the New York Attorney General's Office allege that Baldner pepper-sprayed the vehicle's occupants, which included Goods' wife April and daughters Monica, 11, and Tristina, 12. Goods then fled the scene with Baldner in pursuit.
During the chase, which reached speeds over 100 mph, Baldner's police vehicle allegedly struck the rear of Goods' Dodge Journey minivan twice. The second impact caused the minivan to spin out, flip over a guardrail, and roll. Monica Goods was ejected from the vehicle, which landed on top of her, causing her death.
The case hinges on whether Baldner intentionally rammed the vehicle or was attempting to avoid a collision. During the first trial, expert witnesses for both sides presented conflicting interpretations of data from the vehicles' event recorders.
"Prosecution witness Richard Ruth testified that the data... was consistent with prosecutors' theory of an intentional collision initiated by Baldner," while defense expert Jay Przybyla testified that "the data actually showed Baldner taking evasive action, including a 'hard brake' that dropped his vehicle's speed from 114 to 100 mph in less than a second immediately prior to the second collision," according to court records.
The nine-man, three-woman jury in the first trial deliberated for nearly 24 hours before acquitting Baldner of second-degree murder and six counts of reckless endangerment. However, they remained "hopelessly deadlocked" on the manslaughter charge, with jurors reportedly split six-to-six.
To convict Baldner of second-degree manslaughter, prosecutors must prove he "engaged in conduct which created or contributed to a substantial and unjustifiable risk of death and that he consciously disregarded that risk," a lower legal threshold than the "depraved indifference to human life" standard required for the murder charge.
Ulster County Court Judge Bryan Rounds will again preside over the trial. Baldner remains free on $100,000 bail.
If convicted of second-degree manslaughter, a Class C felony in New York, Baldner faces a minimum sentence of one-and-a-half to three years in state prison and a maximum sentence of three to 15 years.