A Halloween night out in Green Bay took a violent turn when a 47-year-old Wisconsin man allegedly stabbed his ex-wife’s friend inside a local bar, later telling officers the victim was “lucky” to be alive.
Police say Robert Stanley Goodletson confronted the man at the Hammer Inn on State Street after spotting him with his ex-wife around 8:45 p.m. on October 31. Witnesses described the suspect yelling in anger before launching a sudden attack that left the victim with multiple stab wounds to the chest and a deep cut to his head.
Responding officers found the injured man outside the bar and rushed him to St. Vincent Hospital, where he told investigators, “Robert [Goodletson] began yelling at me across the bar. I walked over to [Goodletson] and he grabbed on to me. I do not remember how I got away but I walked outside and was told I was bleeding.”
Police located Goodletson behind the bar shortly after, noting blood on his hands and a sheathed knife on his belt. He was arrested and charged with attempted first-degree intentional homicide with use of a dangerous weapon.
According to the criminal complaint, Goodletson admitted to the stabbing, claiming the victim had been “sleeping with his wife” and insisting he acted in self-defense. Officers reported he also remarked that he was a concealed carry permit holder and that they were “lucky” he didn’t kill the man.
Surveillance video reportedly captured the suspect shouting “No f—ing way” upon seeing the pair, then charging toward the victim and repeatedly stabbing him while pinning him against a wall.
Goodletson remains in the Brown County Jail on a $250,000 bond. Court records show he made an initial appearance Tuesday and is scheduled to return to court on November 18.
