The Franklin County coroner has ruled the death of Casey Goodson Jr., a man shot by police in Ohio last week, a homicide, according to the coroner’s report.
Coroner Anahi Ortiz said the full autopsy will be released in 12 to 14 weeks, according to WOSU Public Media.
“Based on findings from the autopsy and medical death investigation, manner of death is homicide,” Ortiz wrote in a news release Wednesday. “Cause of death at this time is preliminary; we are awaiting medical records as well as the toxicology report.”
Goodson, 23, was shot at his home by Franklin County Sheriff’s Deputy Jason Meade last Friday in Columbus, Ohio, but the circumstances surrounding the shooting remain unclear.
The Franklin County Sheriff’s Office first reported Friday the fatal shooting of a man that day on the north side of Columbus. It wasn’t until Sunday, more than 48 hours later, that police revealed details such as the name of the victim and the deputy who was involved.
Since then, Goodson’s family members and law enforcement officials have given conflicting details. The sheriff’s office does not provide officers with body cameras, but deputies’ vehicles have dash-mounted cameras. The Associated Press has requested that footage.
On Tuesday, federal authorities announced they would launch an investigation into Goodson’s death, in conjunction with the Columbus Division of Police. David M. DeVillers, U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, said his office would review the case and “take appropriate action if the evidence indicates any federal civil rights were violated.”
Goodson’s family said he was shot while walking in his home, and that his grandmother and two toddlers witnessed the shooting.
U.S. Marshal Peter Tobin’s narrative leaves out “key details that raise cause for extreme concern,” a statement from attorneys representing Goodson’s family reads, including the object Goodson was holding. Police say it was a gun that was later recovered from the scene; his family says Goodson was holding a Subway sandwich.
“At this point, witness testimony and physical evidence raise serious concerns about why Casey was even confronted, let alone why he was shot dead while entering his own home,” the Goodson family’s lawyers added.
The statement also pushed back on the detail about Goodson carrying a gun, saying even if that were the case, he had a license to carry a concealed weapon in Ohio.
The case now remains under the jurisdiction of the Columbus Division of Police Critical Incident and Response Team because the sheriff’s office has a policy not to oversee investigations into its own deputies.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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