Justice Delayed, Not Denied: Ex-Trooper Sentenced in Monica Goods’ Death

A Black family heading home for Christmas. A traffic stop gone wrong. And an 11-year-old girl who never made it home. The sentencing of former New York State Trooper Christopher Baldner to 2½ to 7½ years in prison for the manslaughter of Monica Goods is a landmark moment in the ongoing fight for police accountability in America. It does not erase the grief. It does not bring Monica back. But it sends a message that no badge is a shield against justice.

A Family on the Way Home for Christmas

Just before midnight on December 22, 2020, Tristin Goods was driving his family northbound on the New York State Thruway. His wife and their two daughters, aged 11 and 12, were heading home for the Christmas holiday. Near mile marker 92 in Ulster County, Trooper Christopher Baldner pulled the SUV over for speeding.

What happened next would shatter a family forever.

According to prosecutors and the New York Attorney General’s Office, Baldner deployed pepper spray directly into the interior of the Goods family vehicle during the stop. As the family screamed, Tristin Goods panicked and drove away. Baldner pursued. At speeds reportedly reaching 130 mph, Baldner rammed his patrol cruiser into the rear of the Goods’ SUV twice. On the second strike, the vehicle skidded into the center guardrail, flipped, and came to rest upside down. Monica Goods was ejected from the vehicle. She was pronounced dead shortly after.

She was 11 years old.

The Long Road to Accountability

The road to justice for Monica Goods was neither quick nor easy. Baldner faced a first trial in which he was acquitted of second-degree murder and six counts of reckless endangerment. That jury deadlocked in November 2025 on the manslaughter charge, forcing a mistrial.

A second trial brought a different result. In March 2026, an Ulster County jury convicted Baldner of second-degree manslaughter.

On June 2, 2026, Judge Bryan Rounds sentenced Baldner to 2½ to 7½ years in prison, half the 15-year maximum. Baldner, 47, of Catskill, was taken directly to Ulster County jail following sentencing, ending a nearly 20-year law enforcement career.

Judge Rounds noted that justice had only been “half served,” and said he listened carefully to the victim, including Monica’s own final words recorded during the chase: “Daddy, stop.”

What the Prosecution Said

Assistant Attorney General Jennifer Gashi was direct in her assessment of Baldner’s actions throughout both trials.

“This was not a pursuit, this was an attack,” Gashi told jurors during closing arguments. She alleged that Baldner had “recklessly used his patrol car as a weapon” and acted “out of anger and rage,” with complete disregard for the lives of the people in the vehicle he was chasing.

Gashi also noted that after the crash, Baldner did not check on any of the occupants of the Goods family vehicle.

The Defense’s Argument

Baldner’s legal team maintained throughout both trials that the crash was the result of the Goods vehicle cutting off the trooper during the pursuit. Defense attorney Anthony Ricco pointed to Tristin Goods’ decision to flee the traffic stop as a central factor.

“His actions have to factor in,” Ricco said. “He knows none of this had to happen.”

An accident reconstruction expert for the defense testified that Goods lost control of the SUV after what he described as “a very minor impact.” Baldner himself did not testify at either trial.

A Mother’s Pain, A Family’s Loss

No sentence could measure what Monica Goods’ mother, Michelle Surrency, has carried since that December night.

“For me, there will never be justice,” Surrency told the New York Daily News. “There’s only one real justice, and that’s Monica coming back. Nothing changes for us at all. We still visit Monica in the cemetery.”

Yet Surrency also acknowledged the importance of what happened in that courtroom.

“It is some type of accountability,” she said. “It’s a deterrent to let people know that you can’t do crimes and think you’re above the law.”

The family’s attorney, Sanford Rubinstein, was blunt in what he hopes this verdict means nationally.

“Let this be a message to police officers all over the country, that if you do what this police officer did, you will go to jail.”

The Bigger Picture: Police Accountability in America

The conviction and sentencing of Christopher Baldner is notable for several reasons:

• He was the first New York State trooper ever to stand trial for murder in connection with a vehicle pursuit.

• The case was prosecuted by the New York Attorney General’s Office of Special Investigation (OSI), established under a 2021 law that empowers the AG to investigate incidents where officers may have caused civilian deaths.

• That law was born out of frustration with local district attorneys who many believed lacked the independence to hold law enforcement accountable.

• Baldner had a documented history of ramming vehicles during pursuits before the night Monica Goods died.

The Police Benevolent Association of the New York State Troopers issued a statement after the March conviction saying it was “deeply disappointed by the verdict,” continuing to argue that Baldner acted in accordance with his training.

That argument rings hollow to those who rallied for years outside Ulster County Court. Protesters chanted “Black children matter” and “Justice for Monica Goods” throughout both trials.

What This Means Going Forward

The case raises urgent questions about police pursuit policies across the country:

• When should officers engage in high-speed chases, and at what risk to civilians?

• What accountability structures exist when officers use patrol vehicles offensively?

• Should pursuit policies be overhauled at the state and federal level?

Several states have already moved to restrict high-speed pursuits in recent years, citing the disproportionate harm caused to innocent bystanders. The death of Monica Goods adds weight to that national conversation.

Baldner’s defense team announced plans to appeal the conviction.

For Monica

The Goods family did not ask to become the center of a national story about police accountability. They were simply going home for Christmas.

“A piece of my heart is missing,” Monica’s mother testified. She called her daughter “a beacon of joy and laughter.”

Rev. Kevin McCall, speaking for the family after sentencing, summed up the moment clearly.

“Today is justice. It was justice delayed, not denied, and we’re grateful the judge is actually sending him to jail.”

Monica Goods deserved to grow up. She deserved to see more Christmases, more birthdays, more of life. Her death, and the long journey toward accountability that followed, is a reminder that justice must be demanded, organized for, and never taken for granted.

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