Making a Case to Keep a Case

A state appeals court has issued a preliminary ruling that Orange County prosecutors lack the authority to pursue the case against a man accused of ordering the 1988 execution-style killings of auto-racing legend Mickey Thompson and his wife.

The court did, however, offer prosecutors one last chance, at a hearing Wednesday, to show why the charges shouldn’t be dismissed.

Having weighed both sides’ earlier arguments over the jurisdiction issue, the 4th District Court of Appeal in Santa Ana said in a ruling made public Thursday: “We agree that the court is without authority.... The parties are ordered to show cause before this court

Lawyers for the accused, Michael Goodwin, Thompson’s former business partner, have long argued that Orange County has no jurisdiction, since the murders occurred outside the Thompsons’ home in Bradbury in Los Angeles County.

The Orange County district attorney’s office, however, says that the two men had rancorous business dealings in the county that were at the heart of Goodwin’s motives for the crime and that the alleged plot had been partly hatched in Laguna Beach, where he lived at the time.

Goodwin’s attorney, Jeffrey Friedman, called the ruling a victory for his client. “It’s entirely and exclusively an L.A. case,” he said. “It’s the only case in the history of the state where the crime occurred entirely outside of the county when it is the only thing a person is accused of.”

Orange County Dist. Atty. Tony Rackauckas, however, vowed to press forward with the case. “We think the jurisdiction should be here in Orange County and, failing that, we will consider our options,” he said.

Options discussed previously included Orange County prosecutors pursuing the case in Los Angeles County courtrooms. The Los Angeles County district attorney’s office has declined to file charges against Goodwin on several occasions.

Thompson, 59, and his wife, Trudy, 41, were shot to death outside their home by a pair of gunmen who fled on bicycles. Robbery was ruled out as a motive because the Thompsons’ jewelry and $4,000 they had on them was untouched.

Thompson, the first person to travel more than 400 mph on land, set nearly 500 auto speed and endurance records.

Orange County prosecutors have contended that Goodwin ordered the killings after the two had a falling out, an allegation that Goodwin denies.

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Times wire services contributed to this report.