Mike Goodson arrest: Jets RB pleads ‘not guilty’

The Jets signed Goodson in March and he was arrested in May after police found him and another man stopped in an SUV on Route 80. Both men were reportedly intoxicated, and while transporting him to the hospital police allegedly found marijuana in Goodson’s possession. A handgun and hollow-point bullets were reportedly found in Goodson’s vehicle.

Goodson said he was away from the team to “take care of some important personal things” in a statement released by the team. The Jets placed the 26-year-old running back on the Active/Non-Football Injury/Illness list. Goodson will be allowed to attend meetings and work out individually at the team facility during the suspension. He will not be allowed to practice with the team.

Plea offers have not been extended to either Goodson -- who signed with the Jets this offseason after three seasons with Carolina and one with Oakland -- or Garant Evans, according to a report from USA Today, but a Morris County assistant prosecutor said talks are underway in that regard following Wednesday’s early disposition conference.

The charges filed against the two men will be presented to a grand jury for possible indictment if a plea deal can’t get worked out and would likely lead to a trial. It would seem that a plea agreement is more likely, however.

Goodson was not present at the team’s OTAs last week. As Cimini writes, while OTAs are voluntary and Goodson could have participated this week, both the team and player decided to wait until the situation settled down before Goodson’s return.

Wednesday, he was charged with unlawful possession of a handgun, possession of a loaded handgun, possession of marijuana, possession of drug paraphernalia and possession of hollow point ammunition, all stemming from his arrest in the early morning of May 17 where he and another man were found asleep in a stopped SUV in New Jersey.

Goodson was arrested on May 17 after police found he and another man asleep in a car in the middle of Route 18 in New Jersey. Goodson, guilty of only being drunk his attorney claims, was found to be in possession of marijuana when police also discovered a loaded handgun in the vehicle. He was charged with unlawful possession of a handgun, possession of a loaded handgun, possession of hollow-point ammunition, possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia.

Goodson is scheduled to appear in court Friday morning and his attorney is confident his client will avoid jail time, according to Conor Orr of The Star-Ledger. Goodson signed a three-year deal with New York earlier this offseason. He remains on the roster, although he did not participate in the start of OTAs.

Goodson, who was arrested on multiple weapons and drug charges for alleged illegal possession of a handgun and marijuana, was expected by many to be released. The Jets haven’t taken that step, although the 25-year-old running back isn’t participating in offseason workouts with the squad. Jets owner Woody Johnson said Monday that the team plans on getting the facts of the case from the running back, per Kimberley A. Martin of the New York Daily News. But he wouldn’t give much of a committment about how the team will treat the fourth-year veteran going forward:

In response to further questions about Goodson, Johnson said the Jets are all about “truth, justice and the American way.”