DECATUR - The mother of a man charged with kidnapping an 11-month-old baby said he did not know there was a child in the car when he led police on a high-speed chase through Decatur.

Stephen G. Goodwin, 23, was formally charged Thursday by Macon County prosecutors with aggravated kidnapping, burglary, escape and other charges in connection with the April 3 chase. He will next appear in court April 20 for a preliminary hearing. The most serious charge, aggravated kidnapping, is a Class X felony normally punishable by six to 30 years in prison.

Goodwin's mother, Vanessa Jones of Decatur, said she wants to apologize to the family of Carmen Howard.

"If Stephen would have known there was a baby in there, he would not have took that van," Jones said. "I know in my heart he would not hurt that baby, in no form or no fashion."

Goodwin should have been in prison at the time of the incident after being sentenced in February to four years in prison for a theft conviction. But his attorney requested a stay of the sentence for Goodwin to make arrangements for his belongings while he was in prison. Circuit Judge Ted Paine gave Goodwin three days, over the objections of prosecutors, and Goodwin did not return to court.

According to Decatur police, the April 3 incident began when officers were called to the Tri-Manor Motel, 3420 N. 22nd St., on a reported domestic battery complaint. They found Goodwin nearby and arrested him. Goodwin then told police there were drugs in his room at the motel, apparently in an effort to buy time to escape, Decatur police Sgt. Steve Chabak said.

At some point during the arrest, Goodwin was able to turn his cuffs around from the back to the front. He then fled and stole a running van from Cardinal Drive, police said. The chase reached speeds of 100 mph before police called it off, citing the risk to the baby and the public.

Goodwin then crashed the van into a curb on Camelot Drive. Jones said her son did not realize there was a baby in the car until he heard her screams, and then stopped the car at Camelot Drive. But relatives of the child have said they ran after the van when Goodwin took it, trying to stop it and screaming that there was a baby inside.

Jones also said police used too much force in arresting her son. She said he lost consciousness during the arrest and was taken to the hospital for treatment, although police say they have no record of him going to the hospital.

After Goodwin fled, he struggled with officers in the stairwell of a nearby apartment building. Chabak said Goodwin struggled with officers, who could not see that he was still handcuffed. Officers used pepper spray and then a taser to subdue him.

Deputy Chief David Slade said every use of force is reviewed by the police department. Department guidelines say officers shouldn't use pepper spray and a taser at the same time because alcohol in the spray can ignite.

Slade said there was no risk of that in this case because enough time had passed. Apparently, the officer who used the taser did not know pepper spray had been used as well, police said.

Slade said the case is still under review.

"What we had was some communication failures at the scene because it was so rapidly evolving," Slade said.

Stephanie Potter can be reached at spotter@;herald-review.com or 421-7984.