Deputy Goforth Killer Pleads Guilty, Gets Life Without Parole

HOUSTON, TX — The man responsible for shooting Harris County Sheriff’s Deputy Darren Goforth will spend the rest of his life in prison.

Shannon Miles, who was charged with the capital murder of killing Goforth as he pumped gas in his patrol car in August 2015, entered a guilty plea Wednesday afternoon.

Miles, who was treated for schizophrenia and ordered two for mental evaluations after his arrest to determine his competency, was facing the possibility of a death penalty if he’d stood trial. (Want to get daily news updates and news of other events going on in your area? Sign up for the free Houston Patch morning newsletter.)

Miles has never offered a motive for the shooting, and according to defense attorney Anthony Osso, Miles doesn’t remember murdering Goforth.

"We've dealt with Shannon for several years, and due to the severity of his mental illness...he has no memory of that day in his life even, so it has been difficult to work with him in this respect," Osso said. "This case and the outcome was premised on the evidence we were able to show him and discuss with him, but as far as providing a motive or additional assistance he wasn't able to do that."

However, prosecutors have maintained that Goforth was killed because he was a law enforcement officer, and that Miles considered him a target when he saw him at the gas station.

In a statement issued Wednesday afternoon, Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez expressed his gratitude to the prosecutors for a just outcome:

“Two years ago, the Harris County Sheriff’s Office family suffered a terrible loss when our brother, Deputy Darren Goforth, was ambushed and gunned down. Deputy Goforth served the residents of Harris County for nearly a decade. He will always be remembered for his service, his bravery, and his sacrifice.

Today, the Goforth family and the Harris County Sheriff’s Office family are pleased to learn that justice will be served upon Deputy Goforth’s killer. We are grateful to Special Prosecutor Brett Ligon and his team for their hard work to bring this terrible case to a fair resolution.
To the Goforth family, you will always be part of our family and our thoughts and prayers remain with you.”

Kathleen Goforth, Deputy Goforth’s widow, read a statement outside the courtroom after Miles entered his plea.

In her statement, Goforth said her children were still working to heal after their father’s murder, whom she described as “a really good dad.”

“They’ve already gone through so much, the ramifications for them from their father’s death, will never end,” she said. “When you lose someone so integral to your life, so core to who you are, the challenges may change and alter as time passes, but it never truly ends.”

Goforth said her late husband was a doting father who checked often on his children, or would pick them up from school when he wasn’t working.

“He loved our kids,” she said. “I am so grateful for the memories they have of him, and I hope to always honor that, because that’s what they need and what Darren deserved.”

Special Prosecutor Brett Ligon said he’d shared the information with Kathleen Goforth about Miles’ plea, and she felt a sentence of life without the possibility of parole was just.

Ligon, who was confident about going to trial, called a life sentence “a beat down that serves interest and justice.”

“You die nameless, you die faceless, and you die an anonymous death where no one gives a good god damn about you and you die in a pauper’s grave,” Ligon said. “That is the beat down that’s life without parole. He got the ultimate suck.”

Image: Harris County Sheriff's Office

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