How the deadly Harding Street raid happened and what has happened since

HOUSTON — More than five years after two people were killed in their southeast Houston home in what many believe was a botched drug bust, the victims' family may finally get answers at a September murder trial.

Gerald Goines, the retired Houston Police Department narcotics officer who was involved in the deadly raid, is scheduled to go to trial Sept. 9. Goines is charged with two counts of aggravated murder in the deaths of Dennis Tuttle and Rhogena Nicholas. He is accused of creating a false arrest warrant that led to the deaths of the two homeowners and their dog.

Nearly a dozen current and former officers are also awaiting trial on charges related to the raid, stemming from subsequent investigations into the department's narcotics squad.

Here is a timeline of how the case unfolded.

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What happened since then?

August 17, 2021

The murder charge against former Houston police officer Felipe Gallegos has been dropped due to concerns about the conduct of a former prosecutor, according to Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg. Gallegos is still charged with engaging in organized criminal activity.

August 18, 2021

Harris County District Attorney Coby Leslie was fired by Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg because of his “conduct” and “judgment” in a Harding Street murder case. Leslie told KPRC 2 Investigates at the time, “I was fired because I openly criticized the way Jules Johnson, the head of the civil rights division, and Kim Ogg mishandled the Gallegos case.”

September 7, 2021

Former HPD Officer Steven Bryant's federal sentencing has been postponed until February 2022. In June 2021, Bryant pleaded guilty to robbery and testified as a prosecution witness against his former partner. Bryant is still awaiting federal sentencing.

February 24, 2022

Charges against former HPD Lt. Robert Gonzalez have been dropped. He was originally charged with embezzlement of trust funds, for recklessly handling department funds. He was accused of approving payments to informants after they had already been made.

January 19, 2023

Goines appeared in Harris County's 228th District Court, presided over by Judge Frank Aguilar. His attorneys sought to dismiss his charges for his alleged actions during the deadly raid.

January 17, 2024

Former HPD Chief Art Acevedo has been subpoenaed to testify in the federal civil lawsuit filed by the families of victims killed in what investigators and prosecutors have described as an unlawful raid.

KPRC 2 Investigates obtained exclusive video of Acevedo being served by a process server before a recent city council meeting in Aurora, Colorado. Days later, Acevedo resigned as Aurora's interim police chief to take a job in Austin, Texas.

March 26, 2024

Defense attorneys filed a motion asking a Harris County judge to dismiss the indictments against Gerald Goines, arguing that they lacked specific details about the laws he violated that gave rise to the murder charges. The motion noted that while the indictment listed a charge of tampering with a government record, it did not specify which of the six subsections of the tampering statute Goines violated.

April 3, 2024

Goines was re-indicted by a Harris County grand jury on two counts of murder.

June 10, 2024

Jury selection in the Texas state murder trial of Gerald Goines has begun.

July 31, 2024

Lawyers representing Gerald Goines have asked for charges against him in connection with the deadly Harding Street raid to be dropped following allegations of prosecutorial misconduct.

September 9, 2024

The Texas State vs. Gerald Goines game begins.