What to Know
- 76-year-old former NJ middle school teacher was sentenced to three years in state prison for performing sexual acts with two of his students
- The alleged abuse took place between 1993 and 2003
- Robert Goodlin was arrested in September 2017; He pleaded guilty in 2019 to two counts of second-degree sexual assaults
A 76-year-old former New Jersey middle school teacher was sentenced to three years in state prison for performing sexual acts with two of his students between 1993 and 2003.
Robert Goodlin must serve at least 85 percent of the sentence before becoming eligible for parole, Acting Union County Prosecutor Jennifer Davenport announced Friday.
The period of 21 months Goodling has spent on house arrest since being charged in September 2017 will not count as credit for time served, the judge ruled.
According to prosecutors, an investigation revelaed that the alleged incidents involving the first victim took place from 1993 to 1998, when Goodlin worked as an industrial technology teacher at Joseph Battin School No. 4 in Elizabeth. Prosecutors say the victim was sexually assaulted at the the victim's home, in Goodlin's vehicle and "multiple times" at Goodlin's North Jersey cabin.
The alleged abuse involving the second victim took place from 2002 into 2003 in various locations in Elizabeth, prosecutors say, adding that both victims were under the age of 18 during the entirety of the abuse.
Goodlin was arrested in September 2017. He pleaded guilty in 2019 to two counts of second-degree sexual assaults.
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As part of the plea, Goodlin, who has been designated a "compulsive and repetitive" sex offender, agreed to undergo intesive psychotherapy treatment while in prison, prosecutors say.
Goodlin, who did not have any prior convictions for any other crimes, will also be registered as a sex offender and remain under parole supervision for life. He was also barred from having any future contact of any kind with either of the victims.
Prosecutors said that the two victims, both in their 30s today, agreed with the terms of the plea, but found it too difficult to attend Friday’s sentencing.
“They suffer, through today’s date, harm that endures,” New Jersey Superior Court Judge William Daniel. “These scars linger.”
