There are a few different version of what happened in Columbus, Ohio last Friday between a sheriff’s deputy and a 23 year old Black man, but what is for certain is that a 17-year veteran of the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office shot and killed him and his family and community want answers.
Jason Meade was on full time assignment with the U.S. Marshals Service fugitive task force when he shot and killed 23 year old Casey Goodson on December 4. Goodson was not a fugitive nor a subject of any search conducted by Meade on the date of the incident. The task force had wrapped up an unsuccessful search for “violent suspects,” according to police investigators, when the shooting took place.
The U.S. Marshal’s Office now claims that a weapon was recovered at the scene, however, witnesses as well as Goodson’s family said that all that was found next to him and the accumulating pool of blood were Subway sandwiches that he’s just bought for himself and his family.
Family members said Goodson was shot three times in the back. An autopsy will be conducted by the Franklin County coroner, according to investigators. Columbus police are leading the investigation of the incident, which occurred within its jurisdiction but did not involve police. As of Sunday afternoon, roughly 48 hours after the shooting, Meade had still not been interviewed by investigators.
“At this time, Deputy Meade is not on duty and is awaiting interview by the Columbus Division of Police Critical Incident and Response Team, which is investigating the incident,” the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement.
“He was seen driving down the street waving a gun, and that’s when the deputy, at some point after that, he confronted him and it went badly,” said Peter Tobin, U.S. Marshal for the Southern District of Ohio at a news conference on Friday.
“They are lying!” said Kaylee Harper, who says she is Goodson’s sister, in a Facebook post.
