US2 min(s) read
After the body of a young black woman was found hanging in a tree, shocking the nation, Mississippi police have confirmed that the woman was already dead before being placed in the tree.
Tasia Fourtune, 29, had in fact been killed in a dispute related to drugs; her body was then “staged” and placed hanging in a tree at an abandoned home in Jackson in August.
Unsurprisingly, the discovery sparked widespread fear across the majority-black city and beyond, as the state has a long and tragic history of racial violence and lynchings.
It took weeks of speculation and investigation until cops made multiple arrests and uncovered what really happened to the mom of four.
While police have not disclosed Tasia’s cause of death or why the hanging was staged, officials confirmed that the medical examiner had determined that Fortune's death was a homicide and that "the scene and the hanging were staged".
Tasia's mother, Christy Spivey, told the BBC that she remembers the coroner telling her: "We're not treating this as [an] actual hanging." The grieving mother was told that her daughter had died before being sickeningly placed in a tree.
Speaking to reporters outside the Jackson Police Department on Friday, Christy told a horde of reporters that her daughter fought for her life until the very end. She said: "I know she did. I know my daughter."
The heartbroken mother, wearing a T-shirt that read “Justice for Tasia Fortune”, also shared that her late daughter leaves behind four young children, ages 7, 5, 4, and 1.
Speaking about the upcoming prosecution, Christy was adamant that she did not want to see any innocent people going to jail for a crime they did not commit and urged cops to leave no stone unturned when investigating her daughter’s murder.
So far, three people, all of whom are black, have been arrested, and one person has turned themself in. Jarques Ratliff, 51, has pleaded not guilty and remains in custody without bond.
Eric Clark, 45, turned himself in to authorities on Friday and was charged with murder. He is scheduled to appear in court on Monday.
The young mother’s death is one of several cases over the last few years that have forced lawmakers to consult the Justice Department and the FBI to investigate all hanging deaths of black people in the country.
Representative Ayanna Pressley, a Democrat from Massachusetts, compiled at least 10 documented incidents into a letter with over 50 signatures from US lawmakers and sent it to Congress.
