Orleans Man Arrested on Weapons Charges After Evading Deputies on Highway 96

A late-night chase along Highway 96 that began around 11:15 p.m. on April 15 and stretched into the early morning hours of April 16 — ending with an abandoned truck, a cache of unregistered weapons on a Klamath River bar, and a driver who vanished into the dark — came to a close a week later with an arrest in Orleans.

Deputies responded to reports of multiple shots fired, then spotted a black 2004 Dodge pickup and gave chase. The truck disappeared into the night. Deputies searched the river bar and eventually found the abandoned vehicle. It was registered out of Etna to a man who told law enforcement he had loaned it to Jesse Alec Goodwin about a month prior — but added that it had probably been stolen, citing the neighborhood where Goodwin lived. Goodwin did not answer calls to his phone.

A search of the area turned up multiple weapons with no registered owner, found roughly 100 feet from the truck. A K9 unit tracked a scent back toward Highway 96 before turning around. An evidence tow was requested for the vehicle.

The investigation continued.

Nearly a week later, at 9:00 p.m. on April 21, deputies located Goodwin at his residence in Orleans and arrested him on an outstanding bench warrant for marijuana cultivation, possession of marijuana for sale, and a Fish and Game violation stemming from a 2021 case. The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office forwarded the following charges to the District Attorney’s Office:

• PC 30605(a) — Illegal possession of an assault weapon
• PC 32310(a) — Manufacture, sale, or possession of a large-capacity magazine
• PC 25850(a) — Carrying a loaded firearm in a public place or vehicle
• PC 29180(c) — Owning a firearm without a serial number
• PC 29180(b) — Failure to meet DOJ requirements for manufacturing or assembling a firearm
• VC 2800.1(a) — Evading a peace officer

The charges have been forwarded to the DA’s Office. The information in this report has not been proven in a court of law and Goodwin should be presumed innocent unless proven guilty.