Sheriff's office fires third deputy in sex scandal tied to Goforth case

Harris County deputy Darren H. Goforth, 47, a 10-year department veteran was shot and killed at Chevron station on Friday night at Telge and West roads. Officials say the deputy was shot from behind and died at the scene. less Harris County deputy Darren H. Goforth, 47, a 10-year department veteran was shot and killed at Chevron station on Friday night at Telge and West roads. Officials say the deputy was shot from behind and died at ... more Photo: handout Photo: handout Image 1 of / 125 Caption Close Sheriff's office fires third deputy in sex scandal tied to Goforth case 1 / 125 Back to Gallery

The Harris County Sheriff's Office terminated a third deputy related to a sex scandal that has rocked the agency following the murder of Deputy Darren Goforth in August.

On Friday afternoon, the sheriff's office announced it was firing Deputy Jason Goodrich, 27, who worked for two years on the Patrol Bureau.

WITNESS SPEAKS OUT: Woman in Goforth case said to be 'emotional'

According to the sheriff's office, the deputy engaged in inappropriate communications with two witnesses related to incidents he responded to.

One of the witnesses was involved in the capital murder investigation of Deputy Darren Goforth, according to a sheriff's office press release.

"As far as our investigation goes, hopefully this is the end," said Ralph Gonzales, a Harris County Sheriff's Office spokesman. "But we're continuing our investigation to make sure no more individuals are involved."

Goforth, 47, was shot last August in an unprovoked attack at a gas station. Weeks after his death, it emerged that he had been having an affair with a woman who was with him when he was killed.

Shortly after that, Hickman fired Sgt. Craig Clopton, a homicide detective who admitted to an improper relationship with the witness, prompting the department to revise and strengthen its sexual misconduct policy. This week, the department announced the dismissal of Deputy Marc DeLeon for lying about having a relationship with the woman and said it had been investigating Goodrich.

In a previous interview with the Chronicle, Sheriff Ron Hickman said his deputies needed to treat interactions with witnesses "like a doctor-patient relationship."

"While you wouldn't think you'd have to say that - that it's a bad thing to sleep with witnesses - apparently in this day and age you have to spell it out," he said in an interview Thursday.

SCANDAL GROWS: Sheriff's office fires second deputy

Previous to joining the sheriff's office in 2014, Goodrich served as a reserve deputy in Bexar County, according to state records. It was unclear Friday afternoon if he had hired a lawyer or would be appealing the termination.