Goetz Fails to Testify in Snag Over Immunity

Bernhard Goetz, who had said he wanted to appear before a second grand jury investigating why he shot four youths on a subway train, left a courthouse today without testifying.

Barry Slotnick, a lawyer for the self-employed electronics engineer, said the district attorney refused to give Goetz sufficient immunity from prosecution and charged that prosecutors were “looking to stack other charges” against him.

Slotnick said Goetz, 37, had agreed to waive immunity for the events of Dec. 22, the day of the shootings, and Dec. 31, the day he surrendered.

But prosecutors required that Goetz sign a blanket waiver of immunity, which meant that any of his testimony before the grand jury could later have been used against him, Slotnick said.

He said Goetz refused.

Goetz ‘Very Distressed’

Slotnick said Goetz “was very, very distressed.” Goetz sent a letter to the grand jury foreman asking that the panel accept his terms, Slotnick said.

On Monday, Slotnick said Goetz would “indicate to the grand jury that he was a victim and acted to protect himself from a clear and present danger to his person.”

A grand jury in January refused to indict Goetz for attempted murder or assault, electing instead to charge him with three counts of illegal possession of guns. Goetz did not testify before that panel, but said in an unusual move that he wanted to testify before the second panel.

Goetz maintains that the four teen-agers surrounded him and that he was convinced they intended to harm him. The youths claim they were only trying to panhandle $5 for video games.