02/01/2024

Murder Trial Opens in Police Shooting of Ohio Man

The trial's related to the shooting death of Casey Goodson, Jr.

Opening statements began Wednesday in the trial of a former sheriff's deputy charged in the 2020 fatal shooting of a 23-year-old Black man who was entering his grandmother's home in Columbus, Ohio. The trial begins more than three years after Casey Goodson, Jr.'s death.

Jason Meade, a former deputy with the Franklin County Sheriff's Office (FCSO), was charged with murder and reckless homicide in December 2021 in connection with the shooting. Meade, who is white, has pleaded not guilty to the charges.

"Six shots in the back," said special prosecutor Gary Shroyer in his opening statement Wednesday. "All fired by the defendant into the back of Casey Goodson with no reasonable basis for the defendant to perceive a threat by Casey. It's an unjustified shooting. Casey was only 23 years old at the time the defendant killed him. [Meade] was a Franklin County County Deputy at the time. Casey's death is a tremendous loss to his family."

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