Chief Judge John Morse sentenced Travis Washington, 20, on Friday, Nov. 6, to life imprisonment with the possibility of parole, plus five years, for Rashad Gooddine’s 2023 murder. A jury found Washington guilty the previous week.
Gooddine, who was 22 and a father of two, was killed on Sept. 4, 2023, in the 5000 block of LaRoche Avenue. He had gone to a gas station for snacks, according to his family and prosecutors. Washington was 17 at the time.
Prosecutors said Washington waited outside until Gooddine left the station, concealed himself behind an ice machine and fired more than a dozen times with two guns.
The state asked for a life sentence with parole eligibility because of Washington’s age. Prosecutors said Gooddine’s family supported that recommendation. Morse said he was reluctant to impose it, believing video of the shooting justified a harsher sentence. He also raised serious questions about Washington’s potential for rehabilitation.
A 10-day manhunt involving SWAT followed the shooting as authorities searched for Washington.
Yolonda Harris
News Now Georgia
