Ohio
Deliberations resume in the murder trial of former Ohio deputy who fatally shot a Black man
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Deliberations resumed Friday in the murder trial of a former Ohio sheriff’s deputy accused of pursuing a motorist and killing the man at his family’s home.
Jason Meade, who is white, is charged with murder and reckless homicide in the December 2020 killing in Columbus of 23-year-old Casey Goodson Jr., who was Black.
The jury started its deliberations Wednesday afternoon but has since been forced to start over twice after jurors were dismissed and replaced by alternates, one on Wednesday and another Thursday. Court officials have not said why either juror was removed, but they can be dismissed for a number of reasons, including if they fall sick, research the case outside the deliberation room, or talk about it to someone outside the court.
The panel initially included four alternates who heard all the testimony in the case. One of them was elevated to the main jury during the trial. The two juror dismissals during deliberations means just one alternate remains.
Meade testified that he pursued Goodson because he feared for his life and the lives of others after Goodson waved a gun at him as the two drove past each other. He said he then shot Goodson in the doorway of his grandmother’s home because Goodson turned toward him with a gun.
Police said that Meade, who is a pastor at a Baptist church, shot Goodson six times, including five times in the back.
Goodson’s family and prosecutors have said he was holding a sandwich bag in one hand and his keys in the other when he was fatally shot. They do not dispute that Goodson may have been carrying a gun and note he had a license to carry a firearm.
Goodson’s weapon was found on his grandmother’s kitchen floor with the safety mechanism engaged.
There is no bodycam video of the shooting, and prosecutors repeatedly asserted that Meade is the only person who testified Goodson was holding a gun.
Ohio
Multiple homes destroyed by fire in Meigs County, Ohio
POMEROY, Ohio (WCHS) — A fire destroyed one home and damaged two others Wednesday evening, but then rekindled early Thursday morning and destroyed another home, police said.
The fire was first reported just after 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday night in the 300 block of Wetzgall Street in Pomeroy, according to a press release from the Pomeroy Police Department.
According to police, the fire spread to the two homes on either side of the original home on fire. Firefighters contained the fire and saved the two surrounding homes, but the home that first caught fire was deemed a total loss.
Then, just after 3 a.m. on Thursday morning, the fire rekindled and spread to one of the other homes, resulting in a total loss of that home as well, police said.
Pomeroy police said both homes were occupied at the time of the fires, but all occupants of each home were able to exit their homes safely. Police also said that there were no reported injuries, though both families lost everything they owned due to the total losses of the homes.
The cause of the fire has not been determined, and the incident is still under active investigation by the Ohio State Fire Marshal’s Office, according to police.
Ohio
DOE aims to end Biden student loan repayment plan. What it means for Ohio
What we know about student loans and the Education Department
Will Education Department restructuring affect your student loans? Here’s what we know know.
Student loan borrowers under the Biden-era student loan repayment plan, Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE), may soon have to select a new repayment plan after the U.S. Department of Education agreed to a measure to permanently end the program.
A proposed joint settlement agreement announced Tuesday between the DOE and the State of Missouri seeks to end what officials call the “illegal” SAVE program, impacting more than seven million SAVE borrowers who would have to enroll in another program. The settlement must be approved by the court before it can be implemented.
Ohio borrowers carry some of the nation’s highest student loan debt. Here’s how the proposed change could affect them.
What is the SAVE plan?
Originally known as REPAYE, the Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) plan was created to deliver the lowest monthly payments among income-driven repayment programs. Under the Biden administration, it became the most affordable option for borrowers.
According to USA TODAY, the SAVE plan was part of Biden’s push to deliver nearly $200 billion in student loan relief to more than 5 million Americans. It wiped out $5.5 billion in debt for nearly half a million borrowers and cut many monthly payments down to $0.
But officials in President Donald Trump’s administration claim the Biden plan was illegal.
Why does the Department of Education want to end the SAVE plan?
The DOE says the SAVE plan aimed to provide mass forgiveness without congressional approval, costing taxpayers $342 billion over 10 years. In a press release, the Department said the administration promised unrealistically low payments and quick forgiveness without legal authority.
“The Trump administration is righting this wrong and bringing an end to this deceptive scheme,” Under Secretary of Education Nicholas Kent said in a release. “Thanks to the State of Missouri and other states fighting against this egregious federal overreach, American taxpayers can now rest assured they will no longer be forced to serve as collateral for illegal and irresponsible student loan policies.”
If the agreement is approved by the court, no new borrowers will be able to enroll in the SAVE plan. The agency says it will deny any pending applications and move all SAVE borrowers back into other repayment plans.
Borrowers currently enrolled in the SAVE Plan would have a limited time to select a new repayment plan and begin repaying their student loans.
The DOE adds that it is working on the loan repayment provisions of the “One Big Beautiful Bill” Act, which created a new Income-Driven Repayment plan called the Repayment Assistance Plan (RAP), that will be available to borrowers by July 1, 2026.
How many people in Ohio have student loan debt?
Numbers from the Education Data Initiative show that there are about 1.7 million student loan borrowers in Ohio, carrying over $60 billion in debt. The average student loan debt is approximately $35,072.
Ohio also ranks No. 10 among the states with the most student debt, according to personal finance site WalletHub.
How much money does Ohio get from the Department of Education?
The DOE budget for Ohio for fiscal year 2025 is estimated to be more than $5.65 billion, The Columbus Dispatch previously reported.
President Trump announced his intentions to eliminate the Department of Education earlier this year, meaning that Ohio could lose more than $5 billion in annual funding.
Ohio
Papa Johns employee in Ohio accused of shooting, killing man inside store
An employee of a Papa Johns restaurant in Cincinnati, Ohio, is accused of shooting and killing a man inside the store on Tuesday night.
Police in Cincinnati said Murphy Tilk, 21, fatally shot 23-year-old Nawaf Althawadi inside the West Price Hill restaurant around 11 p.m., CBS affiliate WKRC reported. When first responders arrived at the restaurant on West Eighth Street, they performed life-saving measures on Althawadi, who died at the scene. Officials said the 21-year-old Tilk, who was taken into custody without incident and charged, is a Papa Johns employee, according to the Cincinnati Enquirer.
Tilk booked into the Hamilton County Justice Center on a first-degree murder charge, the center’s records show. During Tilk’s initial court appearance on Wednesday, he was held without bond. The 21-year-old man has a bond hearing set for Saturday.
Law enforcement has not said what led up to the shooting or if Tilk and Althawadi knew each other. Police are investigating the shooting.
KDKA reached out to Papa Johns on Wednesday evening for comment, but has not heard back.
Papa Johns is a pizza chain with 6,000 locations globally, according to its website. It has 15 locations in Cincinnati.
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