On February 2, 2011, 88-year-old Gerald Eugene Rabourn was killed in San Diego, California. The tragic incident involved Denise Goodwin, who was hired as a caregiver for Gerald and his wife Carolyn, who was terminally ill at the time. Goodwin exploited her position to steal substantial amounts of money from the Rabourns, using Carolyn's credit cards and opening joint bank accounts to siphon funds.
After Carolyn's death in September 2010, Goodwin turned her attention fully to Gerald, manipulating him emotionally and financially to gain control over his assets. She even had Gerald sign over property rights and access to his estate, positioning herself as the sole beneficiary.
Gerald disappeared in October 2010, shortly after Carolyn's passing, and all contact with his family ceased. Goodwin continued to cover her tracks by giving misleading information to Gerald's family about his whereabouts, including claims that he had gone to Las Vegas with a woman named "Carmen." In reality, this was part of an elaborate scheme, and Gerald's whereabouts remained unknown. Following his disappearance, Goodwin sold Gerald's home and used the money to buy properties in San Diego County, while continuing to present a narrative that Gerald was alive but unreachable.
Denise Goodwin was ultimately arrested in July 2012 and charged with a series of offenses including elder abuse, embezzlement, forgery, and first-degree murder for financial gain. During her trial, the jury found her guilty on all charges, and she was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole in 2015. Despite her conviction, Gerald Rabourn's body was never found, and the exact details of his death remain unknown to this day. Goodwin is currently serving her sentence at the Central California Women’s Facility in Chowchilla, California. The case is a tragic reminder of the vulnerability of elderly individuals to financial abuse and manipulation by those entrusted with their care.
This tragic story underscores how Goodwin exploited her role as a caregiver to carry out a calculated scheme of theft and ultimately murder, preying on the Rabourns during a time of immense vulnerability. Despite her attempts to evade justice, the financial irregularities and inconsistencies in her accounts eventually led to her arrest and conviction.
