Man Charged in Phoenix Serial Case

Maricopa County Attorney Andrew P. Thomas, left, listens to Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon, right, talk about the announced 74 felony count indictment on Mark Goudeau, the alleged Baseline Killer, at the Maricopa County Attorney's office, Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2007 in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin) (Ross D. Franklin - AP)

PHOENIX -- A man suspected of being the area's serial "Baseline Killer" has been indicted on charges including nine counts of first-degree murder, a prosecutor said Tuesday.

The 74 charges against Mark Goudeau, which also include 15 counts of sexual assault and 11 counts of kidnapping, stem from crimes committed between August 2005 and June 2006 throughout the Phoenix area.

"The reign of terror has ended. The quest for justice has just begun," prosecutor Andrew Thomas said.

Defense lawyer Corwin Townsend said Goudeau will plead not guilty to the new charges. He has already pleaded not guilty to two sexual assaults that authorities also attributed to the Baseline Killer.

"We haven't changed our position at all," he said. "The fact that they threw out more charges does not change our belief that they have the wrong guy."

Townsend said he will add to Goudeau's defense team to handle the new charges, some of which could potentially lead to the death penalty under a conviction.

Thomas said he will give himself up to 60 days to decide whether to seek the death penalty.

Police announced last month that the man they believed to be the Baseline Killer was in custody and recommended that Goudeau be charged with murder and other crimes.

Goudeau, an ex-convict, has been in jail since September, when he was arrested in the two sexual assaults. At the time, police stopped short of pronouncing Goudeau the Baseline Killer while they built a case against him.

But last month, police said that investigators had collected forensic evidence _ including DNA and ballistics _ and other evidence implicating Goudeau in the killings.

"We feel very confident about these charges, very good about where we are with the evidence," Thomas said Tuesday, without elaborating.

The indictment says Goudeau victimized 30 people, excluding the two women he was accused of sexually assaulting when he was arrested last year.