Inset left: Justice Oney (Barberton Police Department). Inset right: Nathan Flight (GoFundMe). Background: The location in Barberton, Ohio, where Justice Oney allegedly shot and killed Nathan Flight in April 2025 (WEWS/YouTube).
According to his family and police, an Ohio man who tried to “help a friend in need” escape from her husband during an altercation was killed over it.
Justice Oney, 24, allegedly shot Nathan Flight, 25, while he was attempting to help Oney’s wife find safety amid a domestic conflict, as reported by the Barberton Police Department and local CBS affiliate WOIO.
“He was only there to speak with her since she was clearly upset and was in the wrong place at the wrong time,” stated Barberton Police Officer Marty Eberhart to WOIO regarding Flight, whose family discussed the incident with the station.
Oney allegedly shot Flight while they were outside near an intersection in Barberton. Police say he then compelled his wife into a car at gunpoint before going on the run. They were found not far from the scene. Oney faces charges 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.
Flight’s father, Jason Flight, said, “The judge released the killer so he could return home to his family. I no longer have the chance to see my son. I wonder if Judge Rowland would make the same decision if it were her child, as I doubt 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.”
