A Wisconsin father was convicted of starving and abusing his 14-year-old daughter after authorities discovered she weighed just 35 pounds while living in a house of horrors.
Walter S. Goodman pleaded no contest and was convicted of two counts of chronic neglect of a child, with one resulting in great bodily harm and the other resulting in emotional damage, and one count of false imprisonment on Tuesday, November 3.
Walter was previously arrested in November 2025 alongside the victim’s stepmother, Melissa Goodman, the victim’s adult stepsister, Savanna LeFever, and LeFerever’s partner, Kayla Stemler.
Melissa was sentenced to 15 years in prison in July, while Stemler received an eight-year sentence in August. LeFever is scheduled to be sentenced December 3 after she pleaded guilty in August.
Authorities learned of the abuse when Walter called 911 on August 21, 2025, and reported that his autistic daughter had not eaten for “the last four [or] five days” and appeared to be “comatose,” according to the criminal complaint viewed by Law & Crime.
First responders then went to the scene, where they found the girl severely underweight and malnourished. Authorities said she was so small that she appeared to be the size of a 6 to 8-year-old child.
The girl was rushed to a hospital, and doctors diagnosed her with severe malnourishment. They also found that she had a glucose level of 24, was hypothermic and had multiple bedsores covering her body.
Investigators determined that the girl had suffered abuse for years, which likely began after Walter gained custody of her in 2020. Authorities said she stopped attending school and was allegedly kept in her bedroom while in his care.
Authorities spoke to witnesses during the investigation, and a friend of Walter said he once heard the father threaten to withhold food from the girl if she had acted poorly.
“He heard [Walter] make comments like, ‘If she misbehaves, I’m not going to feed her today.’ [The friend] said he told [Walter] that he can’t do that, and [Walter] said, ‘Well I keep her locked up in her bedroom with a camera on her, and that’s where she stays.’ [The friend] said he told [Walter] that he can’t lock a kid in a bedroom, that was abuse. [The friend] indicated that at times when [Walter] brought [the victim] to his house, [Walter] would tell [the victim] to “Shut the f*** up,’ and ‘Sit there and don’t say nothing,’” the affidavit stated.
Walter is scheduled to be sentenced on February 2, 2027. He is facing a maximum sentence of 28 years in prison.
If you or someone you know is experiencing child abuse, call or text Child Help Hotline at 1-800-422-4453.
