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Washington County inmate pleads guilty to threatening to murder U.S. judge and federal officer

While an inmate at the Washington County Detention Facility, Joshua Goodin sent two threatening letters to the U.S. Attorney's Office in Jackson, Mississippi.
Credit: 5NEWS
Washington County jail

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — A Mississippi man and current inmate at the Washington County Detention Center pleaded guilty to threatening a United States judge and a federal law enforcement officer on July 1, according to the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas Jonathan Ross

Joshua Goodin, 40, pleaded guilty to one count of threatening to assault and murder a U.S. judge and one count of threatening to assault and murder a federal law enforcement officer. 

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) launched an investigation into Goodin around July 5, 2022, after he sent two letters to the U.S. Attorney's Office in Jackson, Mississippi, while he was an inmate in Washington County, Arkansas.

In the first letter, Goodin said, "I swear I'm going to kill you all ... Your (sic) gonna die I promise nothing or no one will stop me." 

The investigation also revealed Goodin sent a second letter saying, "I'm Joshua Goodin I was recently in Federal Court on a gun charge. The b**** ass d.a. (name redacted), 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."

Following this investigation, Goodin was indicted on July 25, 2023. 

Nearly a year later, Goodin entered a guilty plea. He will be sentenced at a later date. 

According to Ross, threatening a federal official can result in up to a 10-year prison sentence with up to a three-year supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. 

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