The City of Columbus is reeling after Casey Goodson was killed in front of his home. Police confirmed he was not a person of interest.
There’s a sense of tension and unrest in Columbus, Ohio as the city demands answers in the latest of Black murders at the hands of the police.
His name was Casey Goodson, 23. Last Friday he was shot 3 times when trying to key into his home. He was killed by veteran Franklin County Deputy Jason Meade. That night, Meade was working as a part of the US Marshal’s fugitive task force.
The deputy was in search of a violent offender. Goodson, who had no criminal background, was legally permitted to carry his registered firearm. Meade, approached Goodson and had a verbal exchange prior to firing his gun. No witnesses were on the scene.
Goodson’s body was found by his 72-year-old grandmother and 5-year-old brother.
Family attorney Sean Walton says Goodson was not a person of interest. Columbus Police Critical Incident Response Team is spearheading the investigation as several Black organizations gear up for protests on Friday and Saturday.
Results from the investigation will ultimately be brought before a grand jury. The FBI in collaboration with the Southern District of Ohio have also launched an investigation.
The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI) usually handles police-related shootings but declined to be involved with the investigation.
According to a spokesperson from the Attorney General’s office, “We received a referral to take a three-day old officer-involved shooting case. Not knowing all the reasons as to why so much time has passed before the case was referred to BCI, we cannot accept this case.”
Goodson is the most recent in a number of Blacks killed by the police in Columbus — including Julius Tate, in December 2018 during a sting operation; Kareem Ali Nadir Jones, shot by officers in July 2017; Tyre King, killed by police in September 2016; and Henry Green, murdered by non-uniformed officers in June 2016.
A spokeswoman for the Columbus based organization, Movement for Black Lives, called for a realignment of power, where the police are concerned. “That realignment can and will happen through defunding the police, reducing their bloated budgets, and re-investing those resources in the creation of new systems of public safety that account for all lives, not just some.”
Blacks make up 28% of the city’s population.