Channel 7 general manager charged after alleged tirade

(Globe Photo / Wiqan Ang/file 2007)

By John R. Ellement, Michael Levenson, and Andrew Ryan, Globe Staff

The general manager of WHDH Channel 7 was arrested after an allegedly drunken, obscenity-laced tirade at Logan International Airport in which she threatened to call a news crew and put a state trooper "on TV and ruin [his] life," according to a police report.

Randi Goldklank flailed her arms and screamed at State Police when they took her into custody after her Delta flight landed Sunday night, according to the report. She had to be helped off the plane by two crew members, according to the report, and struck a trooper in the chest, breaking the prescription glasses in his pocket.

"I'm a big shot in Boston and I'll have your [expletive] jobs," Goldklank told the troopers, according to the report. "You think you're a [expletive] tough guy, just you watch and see what the [expletive] happens to you when I get out of here."

[The first page of the police report can be found here. The second page is here. The Globe redacted the obscenities and Goldklank’s personal information, including her address, date of birth, and Social Security number.]

Goldklank, 40, was scheduled to be arraigned today in East Boston Municipal Court on misdemeanor charges of resisting arrest, disorderly conduct, and assault and battery on a police officer. Her lawyer, David Eisenstadt, appeared on her behalf this morning and argued successfully to have her arraignment postponed until May 19. Eisenstadt declined to discuss the allegations today, saying he did not believe in trying a case in the media.

“I’m very confident that my client will be well served by the judicial system,” Eisenstadt said.

Goldklank defended her behavior to the Boston Herald Monday night and told the paper she was inappropriately touched by a male passenger seated beside her. There was no mention of the male passenger in the State Police report. Trooper Eric Benson, a department spokesman, said this morning that “there has been no complaint made to the State Police alleging any such improper contact.”

A spokesman for Delta Air Lines did not immediately return phone messages seeking comment about the allegation of inappropriate touching on the plane.

Channel 7 also did not immediately return several phone messages seeking comment. The station posted a story on its website that said Goldklank had been placed on administrative leave.

According to the report, she was overheard by police telling medical personnel that she had had "about three dozen drinks." Goldklank smelled of alcohol and was so intoxicated that police had difficulty booking her, the report stated. But then Goldklank's tone shifted.

"The defendants demeanor changed and she became quiet," the report says. "After a few minutes she leaned toward Sergeant Luce and stated, 'You think I’m cute and I think you're cute, just drive me home.' "

A State Police form called an alcohol influence report described her as disorderly, argumentative, and unsteady on her feet. Troopers overheard Goldklank tell paramedics that she was depressed because her mother had recently died, and that she had been taking Lexapro, an antidepressant.

Goldklank took over Channel 7 in 2007 and also runs its sister station, WLVI-TV (Channel 56).

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