Dad who told friend he kept starving 14-year-old 'locked up' with 'camera on her' in room rigged with alarm is convicted

Inset: Walter S. Goodman (Outagamie County Jail). Background: The area in Wisconsin where Goodman and others nearly starved a 14-year-old girl to death (Google Maps).

A Wisconsin father could soon join his wife in prison after being convicted of starving and abusing his 14-year-old daughter, who authorities found weighing just 35 pounds and "very, very close to death" in her home in August 2025.

Walter S. Goodman on Tuesday 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, court records show.

Walter Goodman is one of four adults charged after authorities discovered the girl in what Law&Crime has previously reported as a "house of horrors." The others are the victim's stepmother, Melissa Goodman; Savanna LeFever, the victim's adult stepsister; and Kayla Stemler, the stepsister's partner.

Melissa Goodman was previously sentenced to 15 years in prison; Stemler received an eight-year sentence; LeFever is scheduled to be sentenced Dec. 3.

According to the criminal complaint, Walter Goodman called 911 on Aug. 21, 2025, saying his daughter was autistic, had not eaten in "the last four [or] five days," and appeared to be "comatose." When first responders arrived, they found the girl severely underweight and malnourished, with her collarbone, rib cage, hips and cheekbones prominently visible. She appeared to be the size of a 6- to 8-year-old child.

The girl was taken to a hospital in Green Bay before being airlifted to Children's Hospital in Milwaukee. Doctors diagnosed her with severe malnourishment and found that she had a glucose level of 24, was hypothermic and had multiple bedsores. Doctors feared she could suffer catastrophic organ failure within 72 hours.

Investigators determined that the girl's condition had developed over years. After Walter Goodman gained custody of her in 2020, she stopped attending school and was allegedly kept inside her bedroom, where her father had installed a camera and an alarm on the door.

A friend of Walter Goodman told police he once heard the father threaten to withhold food from the girl if she acted out. From a probable cause affidavit:

He heard [Walter Goodman] make comments like, "If she misbehaves, I'm not going to feed her today." [The friend] said he told [Walter Goodman] that he can't do that, and [Walter Goodman] 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 Goodman] that he can't lock a kid in a bedroom, that was abuse. [The friend] indicated that at times when [Walter Goodman] brought [the victim] to his house, [Walter Goodman] would tell [the victim] to "Shut the f— up," and "Sit there and don't say nothing."

Stemler lived in the home with her partner, Savanna LeFever; LeFever's mother, Melissa Goodman; and Walter Goodman. Authorities alleged that Stemler and LeFever would care for the girl when Walter and Melissa Goodman were away from home so another child could receive cancer treatment.

Prosecutors previously detailed additional conditions the girl allegedly endured during the five years before her rescue. She was not allowed to leave her bedroom without supervision, and a blanket had been nailed over her window, according to the Post-Crescent.

The girl was also allegedly denied food and water while adults in the home monitored her through the bedroom camera.

Walter Goodman is scheduled to be sentenced Feb. 2, 2027. He faces a maximum penalty of 28 years in prison.