Former Ohio Deputy Is Charged With Murder in Shooting of Casey Goodson Jr

A erstwhile sheriff’s lawman successful Ohio has been charged with execution successful the decease past twelvemonth of Casey Goodson Jr., a 23-year-old Columbus antheral who was changeable respective times successful the backmost during a fugitive cognition that had thing to bash with him, according to a expansive assemblage indictment.

The erstwhile Franklin County sheriff’s deputy, Jason Meade, was indicted connected 2 counts of execution and 1 number of reckless homicide successful the shooting decease of Mr. Goodson. Mr. Goodson’s household and a lawyer person said helium was changeable successful the doorway of his location successful Columbus connected Dec. 4, 2020, arsenic helium was returning location with sandwiches aft a dentist’s appointment.

An autopsy report said Mr. Goodson was changeable doubly successful the midback, and successful some sides of his backmost and successful his buttocks.

The indictment was released by a peculiar prosecutor, H. Tim Merkle, connected Thursday, astir a twelvemonth to the time since Mr. Goodson was killed.

The Franklin County Sheriff’s Office said aft the shooting that Mr. Meade, past a 17-year seasoned of the office, had been assigned afloat clip to a U.S. Marshals Service fugitive task force. Members of the task unit had been successful the country looking for idiosyncratic successful an cognition that had thing to bash with Mr. Goodson, the authorities and lawyers for Mr. Goodson’s household person said.

Mark Collins, a lawyer whose steadfast is representing Mr. Meade, said successful a connection connected Thursday that Mr. Meade would plead not blameworthy erstwhile helium is arraigned.

The Franklin County prosecutor, Gary Tyack, appointed Mr. Merkle and different lawyer, Gary Shroyer, arsenic peculiar prosecutors in June to contiguous the case to a expansive assemblage due to the fact that Mr. Tyack’s bureau was expected to support the region and the sheriff’s bureau successful civilian matters related to the shooting.

Mr. Goodson’s household and their lawyer, Sean Walton, person said that Mr. Goodson had successful his possession lone a disguise to support himself from the coronavirus and Subway sandwiches helium had brought location for himself and his household that day. He had conscionable inserted his cardinal into a broadside doorway of his location erstwhile helium was shot, his household said.

Mr. Goodson’s decease was 1 of a bid of constabulary killings of Black radical that person touched disconnected protests successful Columbus and crossed the federation since past year. The demonstrations successful Columbus underscored tensions betwixt the authorities and the city’s Black residents.

Ma’Khia Bryant, 16, who was Black, was changeable dead by a achromatic Columbus constabulary serviceman successful April aft she lunged astatine idiosyncratic with a knife. Eight days earlier, the constabulary changeable and killed a Black antheral astatine a Columbus infirmary during a conflict arsenic officers tried to apprehension him.

Reacting to the indictment connected Thursday, Mr. Walton, the lawyer for Mr. Goodson’s family, said astatine a quality league that the household had been waiting a twelvemonth for accountability.

Mr. Goodson “was targeted, helium was changeable from behind, and helium was murdered,” Mr. Walton said.

Mr. Goodson’s mother, Tamala Payne, said it had been a twelvemonth of “sadness, grief and pain,” and welcomed the charges that had been handed down contempt the lack of assemblage camera footage oregon eyewitnesses.

“I deliberation that speaks for itself,” she said.

Mr. Walton said the household filed a civilian rights suit connected Thursday against Franklin County and Mr. Meade, alleging wrongful decease and excessive force.

In a statement, Mr. Meade’s lawyers said that helium posed nary information to the community, that helium was a decorated subject seasoned and that helium had acted successful enactment with the instrumentality and his training.

The connection said Mr. Meade started pursuing Mr. Goodson aft helium saw Mr. Goodson waving a firearm “erratically” portion helium was driving. Mr. Meade past followed Mr. Goodson to the location and asked him to driblet the gun, the connection said.

Mr. Goodson pointed the weapon astatine Mr. Meade, who opened occurrence due to the fact that helium feared for his life, Mr. Meade's lawyers said.

While Mr. Goodson had a licence to transportation a concealed weapon, according to the family’s lawsuit, 9 members of his household who were wrong the location astatine the clip said they did not spot a weapon adjacent him aft helium was shot, nor did they perceive immoderate commands from the deputy.

Mr. Walton, the family’s lawyer, said successful an interrogation that the bullets from Mr. Meade’s firearm went done the surface door, that Mr. Goodson’s keys were dangling successful the lock, and that the sandwiches helium had brought location were strewn crossed the level wrong the location aft helium was shot.

“We person nary crushed to quality that Casey had a gun,” helium said. “But that was his ineligible right. He was walking into his ain location and helium was changeable successful his back.”

Mr. Goodson’s household is readying a backstage solemnisation of his beingness connected Saturday, the day of the shooting, and a nationalist candlelight vigil is being organized, Mr. Walton said.

Ms. Payne, Mr. Goodson’s mother, said astatine the quality league connected Thursday that the household wanted bid and did not privation the sanction of her son, whom she described arsenic “good and loving,” to beryllium tainted.

“Casey was doing the close happening and was wrongfully executed,” she said.