An Ohio judge recently declared a mistrial in the case of a former deputy involved in the murder of Casey Goodson Jr.
On Friday, former officer Jason Meade sat on trial for the verdict of the murder of Goodson Jr. back in December 2020.
After declaring and retracting a verdict earlier in the morning to allow jurors to continue, Judge David Young officially declared the trial as a mistrial two hours later after a reported deadlock. Per AP News, some jurors cried as they told the judge that they were unable to reach a final verdict.
With the latest announcement, it’s still unclear where the case is going with prosecutors and defense lawyers eventually having to meet with Young to decide on the next steps.
Throughout the trial, there were a variety of changes made to the jury as one was replaced during the testimony and three were replaced during deliberations.
A judge has declared a mistrial after a jury was unable to reach a verdict for a former Ohio deputy in the 2020 killing of Casey Goodson Jr. https://t.co/MAh7IoBM0i
— The Associated Press (@AP) February 16, 2024
Although the final verdict by these jurors was a mistrial, the attorney representing the Goodson family, Sean Walton, said that there were clearly jurors who believed Meade was guilty of the charges of reckless homicide and murder after looking at the evidence.
“There were jurors back there that obviously felt that Jason Meade was responsible for the unjustifiable killing of Casey Goodson,” said Walton per AP News. “And that should make a statement.”
On Dec. 4, 2020, on the north side of Columbus, Ohio, Goodson, 23, was fatally wounded after Meade shot him six times with a rifle; approximately five of these shots were aimed toward his back. He died at the hospital after bleeding out from his wounds.
Goodson was reportedly in the doorway of his grandmother’s home when he was attacked by Meade. His grandmother and two toddlers were witnesses to his murder.
In his testimony, Meade claimed he fired his gun because Goodson turned to him with his own weapon and was non-compliant with his orders.
Prosecutors, however, reported that a gun was found with the safety lock on and Goodson had a license to carry. Prosecutors also said that he was non-responsive as he had AirPods in. When his family was allowed to clean up the crime scene, a bloody pair of earbuds were found.
Although they don’t dispute claims of a gun, the Goodson family say the 23-year-old was carrying a sandwich and was trying to enter the side door of the house when Meade, who was recently part of an unsuccessful fugitive search, shot at him.
Meade was not wearing a body camera during the killing of Goodson. If convicted, he would face life in prison.
