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Goff charged with 5 felonies following pursuit, standoff
A Greencastle man who led police on a pursuit and then barricaded himself in his home Monday night is facing five felonies and a habitual offender enhancement following the incident.
On Thursday, the Putnam County Prosecutor’s Office filed charges in Putnam Superior Court against Darell L. Goff, 44, Greencastle. These include Level 4 felony unlawful possession of a firearm by a serious violent felon, Level 5 felony criminal recklessness, Level 6 felony pointing a firearm, Level 6 felony neglect of a dependent and Level 6 felony resisting law enforcement.
Prosecutor Tim Bookwalter also filed paperwork for a habitual offender enhancement.
The probable cause affidavit from Indiana State Police Det. Ryan Winters further details about the pursuit and standoff.
According to Winters’ report, Trooper Austin Fowler noticed that a headlight was out on Goff’s black truck while he was eastbound on U.S. 40 near County Road 400 East. Fowler attempted to perform a traffic stop as Goff approached Mount Meridian, but said that Goff instead fled northbound onto County Road 510 East.
The ensuing pursuit made its way northwest toward Greencastle.
It was during the pursuit that Winters said video footage showed the driver extending his arm from his vehicle and firing a shot at Fowler’s vehicle.
The pursuit eventually came to a stop in front of a Cedarwood Drive home in the Woods Edge subdivision on Greencastle’s southeast side. The location turned out to be Goff’s home.
Court records also indicate that upon arriving at the scene, Goff pointed his firearm directly at Fowler before later entering the home.
As Goff exited the vehicle, he said, “There is a child in the car.” It was at this time that a child also exited the vehicle and ran toward Fowler.
The eight-year-old was secured and taken to a safe location.
At this point, Goff barricaded himself inside the home and a four-hour standoff ensued. With the nearby Ivy Tech-Greencastle campus serving as a command center, ISP negotiators established contact with Goff, first getting him to release a female who was in the home.
At approximately 11:40 p.m., Indiana State Police SWAT team began using non-lethal tactical techniques to get Goff to surrender, which he did within a few minutes.
Goff was then transported to the Putnam County Jail and booked in at 1:52 a.m. Tuesday.
He was interviewed by investigators at the jail, giving an account of the incident similar to that of Trooper Winters.
Investigators also found what appeared to be a discharged bullet embedded in a filing cabinet in the garage of the Cedarwood Drive residence.
In addition to Winters, the investigation was conducted by ISP Det. Don Curtis, with the assistance of Lt. Jeff Hearon, 1Sgt. Brian Maudlin, and CSI Sgt. Michael Organ of the Putnamville Post. Also assisting with the investigation were the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office and Greencastle Police Department.
In his habitual offender filing, Bookwalter enumerated four previous felony convictions against Goff, including:
• June 2008: Class D felony theft, Hendricks Superior Court;
• July 2011: Class C felony alteration of handgun identifying marks, Marion County Superior Court;
• Aug. 2016: Level 4 felony possession of methamphetamine, Putnam Superior Court; and
• Feb. 2021: Level 6 felony possession of methamphetamine, Putnam Superior Court.
With charges now filed, Goff is set to make his initial appearance before Judge Denny Bridges at 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 18.