Murder charge for Ohio deputy in shooting

The Ohio sheriff’s deputy who shot Casey Goodson Jr. in the back five times was charged with murder Thursday, as Goodson’s family also filed a federal civil rights lawsuit and the now-retired deputy publicly shared details of what happened from his perspective for the first time.

The December 2020 shooting of Goodson, who was Black, by longtime deputy Jason Meade, who is White, led to protests in Columbus and many lingering questions, in part because the killing wasn’t recorded on body or dash camera footage.

Meade’s lawyer says the deputy fired when Goodson pointed a gun at him. Goodson’s family has said he was holding a sandwich, not a gun, but noted he also had a license to carry a firearm.

The Dec. 4, 2020 shooting happened as Meade, a 17-year member of the sheriff’s office, was finishing an unsuccessful search for a fugitive as part of his work for a U.S. Marshals Service task force. Goodson was not the subject of the fugitive search and the Marshals have said Meade wasn’t performing a mission for them at the time of the shooting.

The deputy began a pursuit of Goodson after he said he saw him pointing a gun at another driver and then at Meade, according to a lengthy account from Meade’s perspective released by attorney Mark Collins on Thursday. Meade himself has not spoken publicly about the shooting.

Meade in his car followed Goodson, whom the deputy said was “waving the firearm erratically,” and then parked and put on a tactical vest identifying himself as a member of the Marshals’ task force, according to the statement.

Meade followed Goodson on foot as Goodson walked toward a house, with Goodson carrying a gun in his right hand and a plastic bag in his left, the statement said.

Meade “commanded Mr. Goodson to once again ‘drop the gun,’ and when that command was ignored, and while the gun was pointing at Mr. Meade, he, in fear for his life as well as those inside the house, fired his weapon at Mr. Goodson,” the statement said.

Relatives say Goodson was opening the door to his grandmother’s house at the time he was shot.