Teen charged in jail guard assault
By Nick Hiltunen
Published in News on September 9, 2008 1:33 PM
A Goldsboro teen severely assaulted a jail guard Monday morning in the dormitory of the Wayne County Jail, authorities said today.
Christin Ray Godette, 17, has been in jail for the past 353 days for first-degree sexual assault and a violent break-in spree in September 2007.
Now, he will face charges for assaulting jail guard John Beaman, Sheriff Carey Winders and Jail Capt. James Tadlock said.
"The inmate was out of the cell when the officer (Beaman) was making the rounds, and he (Godette) beat him up pretty bad," Tadlock said.
The incident ended when Beaman was able to pepper spray Godette and retreat to the dormitory door, which he was able to secure Godette behind after locking it, the jail captain said.
All of the other inmates were in their cells at the time of the alleged attack, he added.
"Yeah, he (Beaman) managed to get out and get away from him, get to the (locking mechanism) and lock the door, and keep the inmate inside the (dormitory)," the jail captain said.
Beaman was first treated by the resident jail nurse, then went to Urgent Care near Wayne Memorial Hospital for further treatment, Beaman said.
Sheriff's Office Detective Sgt. Ron Baker has been assigned to investigate the case, authorities said.
Godette was in jail for two September 2007 incidents.
The Sheriff's Office has accused Godette of first-degree sexual assault on a victim on N.C. 111 South, and then of severely injuring a Colonial Court resident during an alleged violent break-in spree about seven days later.
Winders praised the handling of the incident, and said that jail guards and others who work with accused criminals must always be vigilant about their own safety.
"It's a dangerous job," he said.