FBI probing death of black man hanging from tree in Mississippi

[Jazzy]

The FBI is investigating the death of a black man found hanging from a tree in Mississippi on Thursday in what may be either a crime or a suicide, the agency said.

The man, who authorities did not name, was found more than two weeks after he had gone missing in a wooded area in Claiborne County in western Mississippi, about half a mile from his home, Jackson-based FBI Supervisory Special Agent Jason Pack said in a statement.

State and local authorities are also probing the death, Pack said.

The Mississippi chapter of the NAACP identified the dead man as Otis Byrd, 54, and called for a swift and thorough federal investigation into his death.

"Mr. Byrd was found hung in a tree, and because of that we want to ensure it was not in fact a racial hate crime," said Derrick Johnson, president of the Mississippi State Conference of the NAACP.

The incident comes seven months after a 17-year-old black male named Lennon Lacy was found hanging from a swing set in North Carolina, in a case local authorities initially ruled a suicide but which the FBI announced in December it was probing as suspicious.

The man identified as Byrd had last been seen on March 2, and his family filed a missing-persons report six days later, Pack said, adding that the body was found in the course of a search conducted by local and state authorities.

"Investigators are currently processing the scene for evidence to determine the cause and manner of death," Pack said.

The local sheriff's office contacted the FBI and the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation for forensic and investigative assistance, Pack said.

Source

Wow the media is desperate to start a race war. They don't care one lick about facts as long as they can stir racial tensions. Do you have any clue how many people hang themselves? This isn't even a story until they suspect murder, which they don't yet.

Your thoughts?

 

[Wonko]

It sounds like it needs to be investigated properly, but is the media blowing it out of proportion ??

 

[WHO IS SERAFIN]

Yup, this tension in America is making for good news stories.

 

[Webster]

It sounds like it needs to be investigated properly, but is the media blowing it out of proportion ??

Given all the news about it at present, odds are this was nothing more than a tragic suicide....on the other hand, we are talking about a black man hanging from a tree in Mississippi, so draw your own conclusions on this one.

 

[Jazzy]

Autopsy of black man found hanging from Mississippi tree may yield clues

Authorities conducted an autopsy on Friday on a black man found hanging from a tree in Mississippi to help determine whether his death was a homicide or a suicide, as about 30 investigators searched the area for clues.

Otis Byrd, 54, who had been missing since March 2 when a friend dropped him off at the Riverwalk Casino in Vicksburg, was found in a wooded area about half a mile from his home in a rural part of western Mississippi on Thursday, authorities said. The FBI and the U.S. Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division are investigating the death with state and local officials.

Preliminary autopsy results, which are expected next week, will help guide the investigation, Claiborne County Sheriff Marvin Lucas said. He said Byrd's body had decomposed to the degree that dental records were used in identifying him.

Byrd was paroled in 2006 after spending more than 25 years in prison for murder, state records show.

The Mississippi chapter of the NAACP has called for a swift and thorough federal investigation into Byrd's death, saying its circumstances raised fears it may have been a racially motivated hate crime.

Those concerns were echoed by U.S. Representative Bennie Thompson, a Democrat representing the area.

"Given the history of the state, it is unavoidable that the hanging of a black man in Mississippi justifiably engenders deeply raw emotions," Thompson said.

The FBI said Byrd's family filed a missing-persons report on March 8, with state authorities notified five days later.

Claiborne County, which has fewer than 10,000 residents, is about 85 percent black, according to U.S. Census data.

I hope they can come to a resolution quickly; this will just add fuel to the fire.

 

[identityissues8]

Ummm, I think the whole point of the report is because murder is a heavy suspicion.
Hoping it wasn't though.

I know a guy who hung himself in the forest, though. It does happen.

 

[WHO IS SERAFIN]

He was convicted of murder and we let this guy out of jail. Sounds like justice was done one way or another. Or maybe my binge watching of Dexter just does not make me feel bad in the least a convicted murderer is dead.

 

[Webster]

He was convicted of murder and we let this guy out of jail. Sounds like justice was done one way or another. Or maybe my binge watching of Dexter just does not make me feel bad in the least a convicted murderer is dead.

*scratches head in thought* I don't think they let him out of jail; he served over 25 yrs and was paroled by the state of Mississippi; blame them...

 

[WHO IS SERAFIN]

He was convicted of murder and we let this guy out of jail. Sounds like justice was done one way or another. Or maybe my binge watching of Dexter just does not make me feel bad in the least a convicted murderer is dead.

*scratches head in thought* I don't think they let him out of jail; he served over 25 yrs and was paroled by the state of Mississippi; blame them...

Whoever and whatever let out a murderer from jail I am not concerned about how or maybe who did this. 

 

[Dee]

He was convicted of murder and we let this guy out of jail. Sounds like justice was done one way or another. Or maybe my binge watching of Dexter just does not make me feel bad in the least a convicted murderer is dead.

*scratches head in thought* I don't think they let him out of jail; he served over 25 yrs and was paroled by the state of Mississippi; blame them...

Whoever and whatever let out a murderer from jail I am not concerned about how or maybe who did this. 

Well that's essentially how things are done when you're convicted of murder and serve 25 years for it.  I'm reserving my judgment, though, because I don't know the facts.  It would be silly to assume something without knowing more.