A 29-year-old black woman was found dead, hanging from a tree behind an abandoned home in Mississippi, and her grief-stricken community is demanding a thorough probe into her death.
Tasia Fortune’s body was discovered in Jackson on Aug. 3, according to the city’s police department. Her corpse had been there for three to four days, investigators said.
Her identity was confirmed by the Hinds County Coroner’s Office on Thursday.
Authorities have not determined her cause of death and are awaiting autopsy results.
“This is an active and ongoing investigation. Crime scene investigators are working to determine the circumstances surrounding the death,” police announced when her body was found.
The department did not immediately return a request for comment Saturday to The Post.
Authorities have not indicated that they suspect any foul play, but local and some national figures are calling for justice, with some pointing to the state’s history of lynchings in the19th- and 20th-century.
“We should not rush to conclusions, but we also cannot dismiss the fear and painful history these circumstances evoke for black communities, especially in Mississippi. That history makes transparency, thoroughness, and truth essential,” Bernice King, Martin Luther King’s daughter wrote on Facebook.
“I am praying for Tasia’s family and loved ones as they grieve. They deserve answers. Tasia deserves dignity. And there must be a complete and transparent investigation into what happened to her.
Councilman Kenneth Stokes sent a letter to US Attorney Baxter Kruger on Wednesday, declaring the community is in “dire need” of help from his office.
“Surely, somebody should say something,” Stokes said.
Fortune’s sister LaToni told Mississippi Today that the last time she saw her sister was last month when she returned to Kentucky to visit her family.
“She just comes back to Kentucky and visit us or we’ll go to Jackson and visit her,” she told the outlet.
Fortune’s family has launched a GoFundMe to cover funeral expenses, which has already raised over $83,000.
“Her loss has deeply shaken everyone who knew and loved her, and her family is now trying to begin healing while also facing the painful responsibility of saying their final farewells,” her relative Etta Avolio wrote.
Read the full article here
