Former deputy convicted in shooting death of Black man at family home
FILE-Black Lives Matter activist holds a picture of Casey Goodson Jr. during a march and rally to indict former Sheriff's Deputy Jason Meade, who shot and killed Goodson in December 2020. (Photo by Stephen Zenner/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Ima
An ex-sheriff's deputy was found guilty of reckless homicide at a May 7 trial for shooting a Black man who was bringing sandwiches to his grandmother's home in Columbus, Ohio.
In December 2020, Casey Goodson Jr., 23, was shot and killed by Jason Meade in an incident that sparked outrage in the Ohio community.
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Meade retired from the Franklin County Sheriff’s Department in 2021.
What occurred in the shooting death of Casey Goodson Jr.?
Dig deeper:
Jason Meade, who is white, said during his trial that his shooting of Casey Goodson Jr. — five times in the back and once in the side — was justified because he alleged to have seen Goodson holding a gun and turning toward him in the doorway of a house in Columbus, Ohio.
This was Meade's second murder trial after the first one ended in a mistrial in 2024. Meade did not take the stand at his second trial.
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In the second trial, the Associated Press reported that the judge declared a mistrial on the murder charge after they couldn't agree on that count on May 7.
At his first trial, Meade testified that he pursued Goodson after the man allegedly waved a gun at him as they passed each other in their cars.
Citing the Goodson family and prosecutors, the AP noted that Goodson was holding a bag of Subway sandwiches in one hand and his keys in the other and was listening to music through earbuds when he was killed.
The Associated Press reported that no one else testified to seeing Goodson holding the gun he was licensed to carry, and no cameras recorded the shooting.
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Christopher Corne was driving nearby on the day of the incident and testified for the prosecution at both trials. Corne stated that Goodson apparently was dancing and singing in his truck before the shooting happened. And he also testified during the first trial that he did not see a gun in Goodson’s hand.
Meanwhile, Columbus Police Officer Samuel Rippey testified at the second trial that while he was providing emergency treatment to Goodson, he saw the gun, with an extended magazine, lying on the floor.
Judge David Young set sentencing for Meade for July 16.
The AP reported that Meade now becomes the second white police officer to be convicted in the killing of a Black man in Ohio. Former Columbus Police Officer Adam Coy was convicted of murder in the shooting of Andre Hill in 2020.
The Source: Information for this story was provided by The Associated Press, which cites testimony from the trial. This story was reported from Washington, D.C.