Police in Jackson, Mississippi, have detained a man involved in the death of Tasia Fortune, a 29-year-old Black woman found hanging from a tree behind an empty house in August.
On Thursday, the state medical examiner ruled Fortune’s death a homicide.
While attending a press conference on Friday, Jackson police chief RaShall Brackney-Wheelock stated that police had secured search and arrest warrants for Jacques Ratliff and taken him in custody following his encounter at the roadside.
The brutal murder of the mother of four has gained widespread attention, sparking outrage among the citizens, both because of the severity of the crime and Mississippi’s brutal history of racist violence and lynchings.
Brackney told media, “We understand the questions and the desire for answers given Mississippi’s history,” Brackney said. “We understand this case is being viewed through a broader lens, a global lens, and we do not dismiss those concerns. We are taking them seriously.”
“At the same time, we do have a responsibility to make sure that what we say publicly is supported by our evidence and facts.”
“We cannot speculate by the nature or the manner in which Ms. Fortune was killed, beyond what has been officially determined by the medical examiner,” Brackney added.
After receiving the news of the murderer's arrest, Fortune’s mother, Christy Spivey, said Friday that she told police, “I just started crying and told them ‘thank you, thank you, thank you."
Spivey said police did not share a motive or whether DNA led them to the arrest, adding, “We still don’t have a lot of answers,” Spivey said.
