Charges dropped against former Belton PD officer
- 2 hours ago
- 1 min read
By Allen Edmonds
SEDALIA - Charges have been dropped against the former Belton police officer charged with forcible rape in Pettis County following the death of the victim, according to attorneys for both the prosecution and the defense.
Collin K. Goodsell, 28, of Peculiar, was arrested in February and held without bail in connection with a sexual assault investigation being conducted by the Missouri State Highway Patrol’s Troop A Criminal Investigative Unit. He was later released on $150,000 bond.
According to charging documents, Goodsell was accused of using “forcible compulsion,” to have sexual intercourse with the victim, displaying a gun in a threatening manner. The incident is alleged to have occurred in 2017.
Pettis County Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Scott Fox said Wednesday that the charges had been dismissed "without prejudice," meaning that a case could be refiled if evidence warranted. He confirmed that the victim had died of natural causes.
According to defense attorney Matthew Brown, the victim died of a heart attack caused by a severe asthma attack.
Goodsell was first hired by the Belton Police Department in August of 2023 as a lateral hire from the Chillicothe Police Department, according to City Manager Joe Warren. He left Belton and went back to Chillicothe in May of 2024 for family reasons.
He returned to Belton in October of 2024 and has been employed in Belton since.
He was placed on paid administrative leave Dec. 8, 2025, pending investigation by the MSHP. He was placed on unpaid administrative leave when he was formally charged, Warren said. He remained an employee on administrative leave as of Wednesday, according to Warren.