The family of a Black student who was found hanging from a tree on a college campus in Mississippi has retained the civil rights attorney Ben Crump as questions continue to mount around the death.
On Monday, staff at Delta State University found the body of Demartravion “Trey” Reed near campus pickleball courts. Michael Peeler, the Delta State police chief, has said Reed appeared to have died by suicide and that there were no signs of foul play, but concerns have grown and the case has brought up painful memories of the state’s history of racist violence.
While local police and the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation look into the death, attorneys representing Reed’s family are conducting their own investigation and plan to seek an independent autopsy.
“Trey was a young man full of promise and warmth, deeply loved and respected by all who knew him. His family and the campus community deserve a full, independent investigation to uncover the truth about what happened,” Crump said in a statement on Tuesday.
“We cannot accept vague conclusions when so many questions remain. I stand with this family, and I will lead a team of civil rights leaders and organizations in pursuing transparency and answers for Trey’s family.”
Meanwhile, Bennie Thompson, a Mississippi Democratic congressman, called for the FBI to investigate.
“The FBI has the tools and experience necessary to conduct a thorough, unbiased inquiry, and time is of the essence,” Thompson said in a statement.
The FBI told the Clarion Ledger that the agency is aware of the case and “prepared to investigate” if there is evidence of a potential federal violation.
The Delta State campus in Cleveland, near the Arkansas state line, is located only about 30 miles (48km) from a site closely associated with the infamous lynching of Emmett Till. A sign at the Tallahatchie River landing near Glendora commemorates the discovery 70 years ago of Till’s mutilated body in the water.
Reed’s case quickly drew attention online, and hearkened back to the Jim Crow era of racial terror and the violent killings of Black people at the hands of white vigilantes in Mississippi and across the US south.
The Bolivar county coroner, Randolph Seals Jr, disputed rumors that Reed was found with broken limbs. In a statement cited by local news outlets, Seals said his office conducted a preliminary examination and concluded the student did not suffer any lacerations, contusions, compound fractures, broken bones or injuries consistent with an assault.
The NAACP said in a statement posted online: “While initial reports offered no evidence of ‘foul play’, you’d have to excuse our skepticism amidst growing racially motivated violence targeted at our communities across this nation.
“So while we await more formal autopsy reports and information, we offer this piece of history with a level of certainty: Our people have not historically hung ourselves from trees.”
In a video posted on Tuesday to the university’s Facebook page, Delta State president Dan Ennis said the university was resuming operations while continuing to mourn. He said campus officials were staying in touch with the student’s family.
“We know that we can never fully heal this wound,” Ennis said. “We continue to cooperate with investigators. We continue to make sure that all the information necessary is given to authorities. And we continue to hope for answers.”
Classes were canceled on Monday at the university, as were events to celebrate the 100th anniversary of its opening as Delta State Teachers College in September 1925.
