Valley Cottage Shooter Sentenced to 25 Years

A 54-year-old Valley Cottage man guilty of shooting and nearly killing his neighbor for no apparent reason has been sentenced to 25 years in prison.

Eric Goods opened fire on his neighbor, 33-year-old Edward Kern, at the Mountain view Condos on Sierra Vista Lane in August of 2011. He received his sentence -- the maximum -- Thursday morning at Rockland County District Court in New City during a half-hour hearing.

Goods was convicted of second-degree attempted murder, first-degree assault, second-degree criminal possession of a weapon and first-degree criminal use of a firearm last August.

During his trial, 17 witnesses were called to testify against Goods, including the victim. Witnesses also included Clarkstown Police Officer Robert Reilly and Westchester County Police Officer Matthew Notaro, who testified as police dog experts about the tracking of evidence and the identification of Goods in the woods on the day of the shooting.

The shooting turned the sprawling complex into an armed camp during a five-hour manhunt for Eric Goods. Goods was found hiding in the woods near the mountaintop condo complex and was taken into custody without a fight.

Goods and Kern lived two doors away from each other. Police said the two men had very little, if any, interaction and there was no apparent history of any incidents at the complex that could have sparked the shooting.

Whether or not Goods will be eligible for parole is a decision that will be made by the Department of Corrections.