EAGLE — The soft cuffs and Gorilla tape with which a San Diego man allegedly bound his girlfriend were consensual, his attorney claimed during their first court appearance Tuesday, Feb. 20, on attempted murder allegations.

Local defense attorney Jim Little said the Friday night, Feb. 16, encounter between Martin Goodman and a woman who says she was his girlfriend was “a consensual encounter.”

“The allegations are not supported by the evidence,” Little said during Goodman’s Tuesday morning court appearance.

“Soft cuffs and Gorilla tape are not the usual things people bring on ski vacations to Vail,” Chief Deputy District Attorney Joe Kirwan said during Tuesday’s hearing.

Goodman, 54, of San Diego, was booked on attempted murder and kidnapping allegations after his arrest late Friday night/Saturday morning. Little said neither of those charges will stand.

“Mr. Goodman has no criminal record. He has never been arrested,” Little said.

Kirwan asked Judge Rachel Olgun-Fresquez to set Goodman’s bond at $25,000. Little asked for much less. Olgun-Fresquez set it at $10,000. Goodman bonded out of the Eagle County jail Tuesday afternoon.

HOW THIS STARTED

Just before midnight Friday, Vail Police officers were called to The Lodge at Vail in Vail Village where they were met by the woman, who had been found moments before by hotel staffers with her hands zip-tied behind her back.

Little said Tuesday that those zip-ties were soft cuffs and that more were found in Goodman’s luggage when it was searched.

Prosecutors said the woman claimed Goodman was under the influence of alcohol.

However, Little countered that Goodman voluntarily took a Breathalyzer test, and his alcohol level was only .03, well below the legal limit.

She told officers that Goodman, her boyfriend, had done it to her. She claimed he tried to strangle her with his hands and struck her numerous times.

Police quickly located Goodman. He was taken into custody without incident.

Besides attempted murder and first-degree assault, Goodman is also booked on charges of second-degree kidnapping, reckless endangerment, obstruction of telephone service and domestic violence.

Olgun-Fresquez ordered that final charges be filed Tuesday, Feb. 27. Goodman is back in court Tuesday, March 13.

Staff Writer Randy Wyrick can be reached at 970-748-2935 and rwyrick@vaildaily.com.