Arrest in Racer’s Slaying

Orange County prosecutors have filed murder charges against a businessman long suspected of masterminding the 1988 execution-style slaying of racing legend Mickey Thompson and his wife, authorities said Thursday.

With pistols drawn, sheriff’s deputies broke down the door of the Dana Point trailer belonging to Thompson’s former partner, Michael F. Goodwin, around 3:30 p.m. Thursday. It marks the second time police arrested Goodwin this year; in August, he was temporary taken into custody and placed in a lineup.

The arrest followed last week’s decision by prosecutors to file criminal charges against Goodwin, 56, for allegedly taking part in a murder-for-hire plot against Thompson, with whom he had feuded in court.

Goodwin is being held without bail at the Orange County jail in Santa Ana. He is scheduled to be arraigned Monday.

Goodwin is accused of furnishing Thompson’s killers with a stun gun and a firearm for what became known as one of Southern California’s enduring murder mysteries. Authorities also allege in court documents that Goodwin lay in wait for Thompson and hoped to gain financially from the murder.

Prosecutors have yet to decide whether to seek the death penalty against Goodwin, who has long maintained his innocence. Neither he nor his attorney could be reached for comment Thursday.

John Bradley, a television producer who has worked with Goodwin and Thompson, said he believes Goodwin is innocent.

“I think they are investigating these murders to convict Goodwin, not to find the murderers,” Bradley said. “It’s sick what is happening now. I absolutely believe that Mike did not do it.”

Thompson’s sister, who has publicly named Goodwin as the prime suspect in her brother’s death, said she never gave up hope that his killer would one day be brought to justice but felt mixed emotions at news of the arrest.

“It’s always a realization that it doesn’t change anything,” said Collene Campbell, a prominent victim rights activist.

Authorities declined to explain what prompted Thursday’s arrest. The move comes amid a renewed investigation into the slayings.

Earlier this year, the Orange County grand jury heard testimony from witnesses to the killings. And in August, Los Angeles County sheriff’s detectives arrested Goodwin but released him a day later. Goodwin was placed in a police lineup in which two witnesses allegedly identified him.

Thompson, the first American to break the 400-mph land speed mark, was slain in March 1988 in front of his 13-car garage as he and his wife left their home in the upscale community of Bradbury.

Witnesses told police they saw two men flee on 10-speed bicycles. The men didn’t take anything from the house or from the couple, who had nearly $70,000 in jewelry and $4,000 in cash on them.

Ruling out robbery as a motive, investigators quickly targeted Goodwin as a prime suspect. He and Thompson had recently dissolved their partnership during a bitter feud over finances.

Goodwin lost a $531,000 legal battle with his former partner when a judge ruled he had misappropriated Thompson’s investments in various joint business dealings. Goodwin was forced to file for bankruptcy soon afterward.

For more than a decade after the murder, investigators in Los Angeles and Orange counties chased down more than 1,000 clues--most of them leading nowhere. Thompson’s sister put up a $1-million reward. But the case grew cold.

In 1998, however, Orange County prosecutors announced they had been asked to help out because Los Angeles detectives believed the murder plot was in their jurisdiction. Three years later, Goodwin was subpoenaed to testify before the grand jury.

But Goodwin and his lawyers have waged their own publicity battle to counter the allegations, accusing detectives of locking in on him to the exclusion of other potential suspects.

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Times staff writers Jeff Gottlieb and Monte Morin contributed to this report.