A judge declared a mistrial Friday in the trial of an ex-cop accused of murder because the jury was unable to reach a verdict.
Jason Meade was charged in the December 2020 murder of Casey Goodson Jr. in Columbus. Meade, a white man, shot Goodson six times, five of them in the back, as the 23-year-old African-American was trying to enter his grandmother’s home.
Judge David Young had already declared a mistrial Friday morning, but reversed himself minutes later and praised the jurors for their hard work. They returned to Young to tell him they had been unable to reach an agreement, and he ordered them to keep trying. He declared a final mistrial about two hours later, when the jurors, some of whom were in tears, said they were at an impasse.
Young will meet soon with prosecutors and defense counsel to decide how to proceed in the case, but as of Friday, it was not known when that will happen.
Sean Walton, an attorney for the Goodson family, told reporters that while there was indeed a mistrial, there were still jurors who clearly considered all the evidence and thought Meade was guilty.
Prosecutors did not comment before leaving the courtroom.
Meade testified that Goodson waved a gun in front of him as they drove past each other in their cars, so he chased Goodson because he feared for his life and the lives of others. He said he eventually shot Goodson in the driveway of his grandmother’s house because the young man turned toward him brandishing a gun.
Goodson’s family and prosecutors have said that what he was holding was a bag with a sandwich in one hand and his keys in the other when he was gunned down. They do not dispute that Goodson may have had a gun with him and noted that he possessed a license to carry a firearm.
Goodson’s gun was found on his grandmother’s kitchen floor with the safety on.
No body camera video of the incident exists, and prosecutors repeatedly reaffirmed that Meade is the only person who testified that Goodson brandished a gun.
In closing arguments Wednesday, prosecutors said Meade’s claims that Goodson was a threat were simply not credible. Defense attorneys insisted the evidence in the case was congruent with Meade’s testimony.