COLUMBUS, Ohio — A former Ohio sheriff’s deputy testified in a murder trial Tuesday that the man he killed lifted a gun to shoot him, despite prosecutors saying the man’s gun was found on his kitchen floor with the safety mechanism engaged.
Jason Meade took to the stand to describe the events of the fatal 2020 shooting of Casey Goodson Jr., which was not captured by body camera as Meade was not wearing one at the time. He said that he feared for his life and the lives of those around him when Meade shot the 23-year-old Goodson a total of six times — five times in the back.
Meade, who is white, has pleaded not guilty to murder and reckless homicide in the death of Goodson, who was Black. The sheriff’s deputy, who is a pastor at a Baptist church, shot Goodson as he entered his grandmother’s house, police have said. Goodson fell into the house’s kitchen, where his gun was found, according to prosecutors.
Prosecutors say that Goodson was holding a bag of sandwiches in one hand and his keys in the other when he was killed. When Meade testified about the shooting, he said Goodson had brandished a a gun at him from his car, prompting a pursuit. Goodson then failed to respond to commands, Meade said.
He told jurors Goodson had his back to him at first, and he fired at Goodson when he turned to lift a gun toward him.
“I thought he was going to shoot me. I’m thinking, I don’t want to die. I didn’t want to shoot him,” he said. Meade also said he hoped that Goodson would surrender but felt he did not have a choice in order to stop a “deadly threat.”
On the stand, Meade also addressed previous statements about his law enforcement work, made at a Christian men’s conference in his role as a pastor. The recordings received significant backlash, and lawyers for Meade tried to keep the recordings from the jury, but their request was denied.
In the recordings, while speaking to those attending the conference, Meade said he has a “great job” and that he gets to…
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