Left inset: Justice Oney (Barberton Police Department). Right inset: Nathan Flight (GoFundMe). Background: The area where Justice Oney allegedly shot and killed Nathan Flight in Barberton, Ohio, in April 2025 (WEWS/YouTube).
An Ohio man attempted to “help a friend in need” get away from her husband during a fight and was killed because of it, according to his family and police.
Justice Oney, 24, allegedly gunned down Nathan Flight, 25, as he was trying to get Oney”s wife to a safe place during a domestic dispute that the couple was having, according to the Barberton Police Department and local CBS affiliate WOIO.
“He was just there to talk to her because she was obviously upset and was just in the wrong place at the wrong time,” explained Barberton Police Officer Marty Eberhart to WOIO about Flight, whose family spoke to the station about the incident.
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Oney allegedly shot Flight to death while the trio was outside and near an intersection in Barberton. Police say he forced his wife into a car at gunpoint after the incident before fleeing. The couple was located a short distance away. The suspect stands accused of murder, felonious assault and abduction.”
Oney was released on bond last Wednesday and is currently on house arrest, which has Flight’s relatives feeling both angry and fearful, per WOIO.
“The judge let the killer out so that he could go home to be with his family,” said Flight’s father, Jason Flight. “I don’t get to see my son again. I’d like to know if Judge Rowland would do the same thing if it were her child, because I don’t think she would.”
Flight’s sister, Sarah Flight, said, “My brother’s life and the loss of his life was worth more than $25,000,” in reference to what Oney had to pay to get out of jail after his bond was set at $250,000.
A GoFundMe launched by Flight’s family says his life was “tragically cut short due to gun violence as he attempted to help a friend in need.” It describes him as a “bright and shining light” to the people he knew.
“My heart is broken for my family,” a relative said in the GoFundMe description. “My heart is broken for the future that he will never have. For the family he won’t be able to create. For so many generational cycles that I know he would break. This has been devastating to try and accept. It still doesn’t feel real, and it probably won’t for a very long time.”
