COLUMBUS, Ohio — A jury is now seated in the murder trial of former Franklin County deputy Jason Meade. There are eight women and four men on the jury, plus four alternates.
Meade fatally shot Casey Goodson Jr. on Dec. 4, 2020, outside Goodson's grandmother's home.
Meade was working on the Franklin County Sheriff's Office SWAT team when they were serving an arrest warrant not related to Goodson.
Meade's attorneys argue Goodson waved a gun at the deputies, then Meade told Goodson to drop the weapon. Defense attorney Mark Collins has said in previous interviews that Goodson did not listen to those commands. Meade then fatally shot Goodson.
Goodson's family said he was shot while entering his grandmother's house following a dental appointment and he was holding a bag of sandwiches at the time.
Tamala Payne, Goodson’s mom, sat in the courtroom on Tuesday listening as special prosecutors and the defense questioned potential jurors.
“We are happy we are here. We are ready to get through it and get it over with,” said Payne.
Payne said it is symbolic that a jury was seated Tuesday, on what would have been Casey's 27th birthday.
Special prosecutor Tim Merkle asked jurors specific questions about if they used AirPods and if they had concealed carry permits.
Goodson's family said he had a CCW permit and was using AirPods the day of the shooting.
“Casey should have the opportunity to have his case heard by Franklin County residents. It's important that we are here and that they are hearing the facts,” said Goodson family attorney, Sean Walton.
Payne said she's glad this day has finally come and she will be in court every day.
“We are finally here, we finally can come to a road of accountability for Casey,” Payne said.
Opening statements are expected Wednesday morning.
You can view the entire Jason Meade murder trial on 10TV+ starting tomorrow morning. The 10TV+ app is free to download on Roku, Amazon Fire and Apple TV.