An Ohio officer says he didn’t see a deputy shoot a Black man but he heard the shots ring out

Columbus, Ohio — An Ohio police officer testified in a murder trial Wednesday that he heard gunshots but did not witness a deputy shoot and kill a black man, nor did he see the gun that Casey Goodson Jr. shot. according to the deputy, had used it to threaten him.

Jason Meade is charged with murder and reckless homicide in the December 2020 killing of 23-year-old Goodson in Columbus. Meade, who is white, told jurors in his testimony Tuesday that Goodson brandished a gun and pointed it at him as they drove past each other. Meade testified that he then chased Goodson in his unmarked vehicle to Goodson’s grandmother’s house, where the man turned toward him with a gun in his hand.

Meade shot Goodson six times with an assault rifle, five times in the back.

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 as he tried to enter the side door of his grandmother’s home.

Columbus Police Officer Ryan Rosser testified for the defense Wednesday that he and Meade had worked together on a fugitive task force involving multiple law enforcement agencies prior to the shooting. He said he heard the gunshots but didn’t see what happened. His body camera captured the scene afterward, but not the shooting itself.

Rosser, who was driving another vehicle, described his communications with Meade before the shooting.

“(Meade) had a scared, panicked look on his face and said, ‘We gotta go, he’s got a gun, he’s got a gun,’” Rosser testified. He said he did not see Goodson brandishing a gun in his car, but confirmed that Goodson ran from Meade and did not respond to commands to drop his weapon and show his hands.

Rosser said he lost sight of Meade and Goodson before the shooting occurred.

Prosecutors said Goodson was wearing AirPods at the time of his death, suggesting he could not hear Meade’s commands. Prosecutors also revealed that Goodson fell into his grandmother’s home after being shot and that his gun was found on her kitchen floor with the safety engaged.

Neither the prosecutor nor Goodson’s family ever disputed that Goodson could have carried a firearm, but noted that he also had a permit to carry a firearm. Goodson also had a holster around his waist without a belt.

Meade retired from the Franklin County Sheriff’s Department shortly after the shooting.

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Samantha Hendrickson is a staff member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues