Federal judge shoots down convicted pedophile’s claim that he was legally married to teenage boy
John Marzulli
Andrew Goodman, 29, is facing a federal prosecution for molesting a 15-year-old boy. He had previously been convicted in state court for molesting the victim and his brother when they were 12 and 13, respectively.
A convicted pedophile facing trial for molesting a 15-year-old boy can’t claim at his trial that he and the victim were married under Jewish law, a Brooklyn judge ruled Friday.
Andrew Goodman, 29, who is acting as his own lawyer, also saw his requests rejected for bail, a non-jury trial and to videotape the victim’s testimony.
Federal Judge Margo Brodie did not comment on the merits of Goodman’s vile claim that Orthodox Jews can marry at age 13 with the consent of only one partner and need not have consent from the child’s parents. The judge merely pointed out that Goodman is charged with taking a minor across state lines — from Brooklyn to New Jersey — on Valentine’s Day 2010 with the intent to have illicit sex. She noted that the transportation took place before the so-called marriage.
“It was a de facto marriage,” Goodman said in Brooklyn Federal Court. “If you go into a room where you’re secluded and two people are witnesses, in essence, you’re married.”
Goodman also wrote in court papers that Valentine’s Day is a traditional day for nuptials in the U.S. and that he and the boy celebrated their “honeymoon” at the Trump Taj Mahal in Atlantic City by attending a Kid Rock concert.
The victim, who is now 19, was present in the courtroom with members of his family.
Goodman was previously convicted in state court of molesting the victim and his younger brother starting when they were 12 and 13. But a judge sentenced him to only two years in prison as part of a plea deal that was vigorously opposed by the Brooklyn district attorney’s office. At the state sentencing, Goodman professed his love for the boy whom he had molested on more than 100 occasions.
After serving the slap-on-the-wrist sentence, the feds indicted Goodman on charges that could put him away for life.
Goodman advised the judge that the case is complex.
“I was watching TMZ the other day about a 57-year-old actor dating an 18-year-old girl and everybody said it was creepy,” he said. “Sometimes a thing being creepy is not the way we’re going to construct the law.”
jmarzulli@nydailynews.com