COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — A new witness who came forward during the murder trial of a former Ohio sheriff’s deputy testified Tuesday that he saw the man who was killed not long before the shooting but that he didn’t see a gun, leaving the defendant as the only person saying that Casey Goodson Jr. was armed.
Jason Meade, who is white, is charged with murder and reckless homicide in the December 2020 killing of Goodson, who was Black, in Columbus.
Meade maintained during his testimony that he feared for his life and the lives of others after Goodson waved a gun at him as the two drove past each other. He testified that he pursued Goodson in his unmarked vehicle and that Goodson aimed a gun at him again, right before the shooting occurred.
According to his family and prosecutors, Goodson was holding a sandwich bag in one hand and his keys in the other when he was fatally shot. They do not dispute that Goodson could have been carrying a gun and say he had a license to carry a firearm.
Christopher Corne, who works for a heating and cooling company, testified for the prosecution Tuesday that on the day of the shooting, he saw Goodson in his truck at an intersection. Corne said Goodson was “driving erratically” with at least one hand off the wheel. He said Goodson appeared to be singing or dancing to some music in the car. But, he testified, he didn’t see anything in Goodson’s hands.