Mississippi police say woman was dead before body was hung from tree

Police in Jackson, Mississippi, say a woman whose body was found hanging from a tree had already died before the scene was staged. A detective made the disclosure in court on Friday in the case involving Tasia Fortune, a 29-year-old mother of four. Her body was discovered in August on the grounds of an abandoned house in the city.

The case prompted concern in Jackson, a majority-Black city in a state with a history of racial violence and lynchings. Police subsequently made several arrests. A police statement said an autopsy by the medical examiner classified Fortune’s death as a homicide and concluded that both the scene and the hanging had been staged.

Officials have not said exactly how she died or why they reached that conclusion. Fortune’s mother, Christy Spivey, told the BBC that she had more questions after Friday’s hearing. She said authorities had told her that her daughter was dead before the hanging and that the case was drug-related.

Three people have been arrested. Jarques Ratliff, 51, has pleaded not guilty and remains in custody without bond. Earnest Lloyd Jr, 25, was arrested this week, while Eric Clark, 45, surrendered on Friday and was charged with murder.

Clark is due in court on Monday. Fortune’s children are aged seven, five, four and one, her mother said. Spivey said she wanted investigators to prosecute the right people and not anyone innocent.