Tasia Fortune Update: Death ‘Staged’ After Black Woman Found Hanging—Police - Newsweek
A Mississippi detective testified Friday that the hanging death of Tasia Fortune, a Black woman whose body was found suspended from a tree in Jackson in August, was a "staged" lynching tied to a drug dispute.
During a preliminary hearing, Jackson Police Detective Samuel Dukes testified that investigators believe Fortune was killed before her body was hanged behind an abandoned home, citing findings from the state medical examiner. Two Black men have been charged with murder in the case, while authorities are seeking a third suspect. Although officials have not disclosed Fortune's exact cause of death, her death has been ruled a homicide.
The case drew national attention because the scene evoked Mississippi's history of racial violence, though authorities have said the killing was not a hate crime.
The hearing was held to determine whether there is enough evidence to present the case against 51-year-old Jarques Ratliff to a grand jury. Ratliff, who was arrested earlier this month and has pleaded not guilty, remains jailed without bond. Authorities this week also arrested a second suspect, 25-year-old Earnest Lloyd Jr., on a murder charge.
According to reporting by the Clarion Ledger, Dukes testified that investigators believe Fortune was killed at another location before her body was placed in a hanging position in a tree behind the abandoned home where she was later discovered.
Dukes said investigators connected Ratliff to the case through witness statements and alleged that Ratliff and Fortune were friends who had been "intimate with each other."
The detective also testified that Ratliff made statements during interviews before his arrest that contained details investigators believed "you would only know if you were there." Dukes declined to elaborate, saying he wanted to preserve information for future grand jury proceedings.
Dukes also testified that investigators collected a DNA sample from Ratliff, but said testing results are still pending.
At one point during the proceedings, Ratliff interrupted to tell the court that he and Fortune had been friends. Outside the courtroom, his stepdaughter, Lashuna Jones, defended him, saying: "He didn't do it, and I'm behind him."
Fortune's mother, Christy Spivey, later responded to Ratliff's comments.
"It sounded sincere. Tasia had a lot of friends," Spivey said. "I hope if he is innocent that he can prove he's innocent. We don't want any innocent people going to jail."
Spivey later told local reporters that she was still waiting to see additional evidence linking Ratliff to the killing.
"I just hope they have the right people," she said.
Newsweek left a voicemail for Ratliff's attorney, Toney Baldwin, and emailed the Jackson Police Department seeking comment Friday evening. Newsweek emailed Jackson Municipal Court Friday evening to request the court transcript.
"All we want is the truth to come out," Baldwin told reporters after the hearing. "My heart goes out to the family because it's a tragedy, but we do want the truth."
During cross-examination, according to the Clarion Ledger, Baldwin challenged the evidence linking Ratliff to Fortune's death, noting investigators could not confirm where Fortune was killed and questioning whether Ratliff's statements to police were reliable.
Fortune's death shocked the Jackson community after her body was found hanging from a tree behind an abandoned home on August 3. According to Friday's testimony, investigators believe Fortune had been dead for two to three days before her body was discovered.
The discovery sparked nationwide attention because the circumstances recalled Mississippi's long history of racial terror lynchings, prompting calls for answers from community leaders, activists and Fortune's family.
Spivey has previously said Fortune, a mother of four, had struggled with homelessness in recent years but was working to rebuild her life and hoped to start a cleaning business.
Spivey previously told ABC News that Fortune was "strong-minded" and "full of laughs and love."
She also said she never believed her daughter's death was self-inflicted.
"She did not do this to herself," Spivey told the outlet. "I know my daughter, and she did not do this to herself."
A GoFundMe established to support Fortune's family had raised $181,571 from nearly 5,000 donations as of 5 p.m. Friday.
The fundraiser says the donations will help bring Fortune home for burial, support her children and assist the family as they continue seeking justice and answers surrounding her death.
"From the bottom of our family's hearts we want to THANK EVERYONE for helping our family in one of the most tragic moments of our life," the organizers wrote. "We will be able to take the next steps in helping Tasia and our family receive justice and answers."
Newsweek’s reporters and editors used Martyn, our AI assistant, to produce this story. Learn more about Martyn here.
Contact Newsweek editors for this story: Samantha Beech and Anthony Murray.
