FINALLY!!!!Hearing held for Marine accused of killing Romanian rock star
July 25, 2005
Hearing held for Marine accused of killing Romanian rock star
By Laura Bailey
Times staff writer
A Marine embassy guard accused of killing a Romanian rock star in a traffic accident last year began his Article 32 evidentiary hearing at Quantico, Va., today.
Staff Sgt. Christopher VanGoethem, a former detachment commander at the U.S. Embassy in Bucharest, is accused of killing Teofil Peter, a popular Romanian musician, in Bucharest on the morning of Dec. 4.
Charges include reckless driving with a specification of negligent homicide, adultery and making a false official statement. VanGoethem is also charged with drunken driving and disorderly conduct from a March 1, 2004, incident and of wrongfully using a government computer to view and store pornography.
In the opening hours of the hearing, which will determine whether VanGoethem will face court-martial, military prosecutor Capt. Charles A. Miracle alleged that VanGoethem crashed into the taxi in which Peter was riding at an intersection in Bucharest, causing the taxi to flip over four times, killing Peter immediately and injuring another passenger.
A Naval Criminal Investigative Service special agent testified that VanGoethem allegedly attended a Christmas party at the U.S. Embassy the night of the incident. He said VanGoethem, who is married, left the party with Ilse Wentworth, the adult daughter of the embassy’s public affairs officer. They went to a nightclub and then to VanGoethem’s residence to have sex, said Special Agent James Lofstrom.
VanGoethem crashed into Peter’s taxi shortly after dropping Wentworth off at her residence in the early morning hours of Dec. 4, Lofstrom said.
The defense, led by Maj. Phillip Stackhouse, has yet to present its side in the hearing, slated to last until mid-week.
Lt. Col. Stuart Couch presided over the hearing and will make recommendations to Col. William Rizzio Jr., commander of the Quantico-based Marine Security Guard Battalion.