Recent Hangings in the South Spark Lynching History Concerns

WHO:

ABC News - Tasia Fortune, a 29-year-old Black woman from Mississippi.

ABC News - Jarques Ratliff, a 51-year-old Black man, pleaded not guilty to the murder of Tasia Fortune.

ABC News - Christy Spivey, Tasia Fortune's mother, who is white.

ABC News - Sean Joe, a professor of social work at Washington University in St. Louis.

ABC News - Leigh Richardson, the wife of Dennoriss Richardson, who was found dead in September 2024.

ABC News - U.S. Rep. Ayanna Pressley, a Massachusetts Democrat and lead author of a letter to the Justice Department.

WHAT:

ABC News - Tasia Fortune was found hanging from a tree behind an abandoned home in Jackson, Mississippi.

ABC News - Police are investigating the death of Demetrius Eugene Fleming, 38, found on August 21 in Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina.

ABC News - The body of Kyle Bassinga, 21, was found in a park in Cobb County, Georgia, in February.

ABC News - The death of Trey Reed, a 21-year-old Black student at Delta State University, was ruled a suicide in September 2025.

ABC News - The death of Dennoriss Richardson, 39, was ruled a suicide in September 2024.

ABC News - More than 4,400 lynchings occurred in the U.S. between Reconstruction and World War II.

ABC News - Nearly 60 members of Congress signed a letter demanding the Justice Department investigate hanging deaths of Black individuals.

WHERE:

ABC News - Jackson, Mississippi, where Tasia Fortune was found.

ABC News - Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina, where Demetrius Eugene Fleming was found.

ABC News - Cobb County, Georgia, where Kyle Bassinga was found.

ABC News - Delta State University in Mississippi, where Trey Reed was found.

ABC News - Colbert County, Alabama, where Dennoriss Richardson was found.

WHEN:

ABC News - Tasia Fortune was found on August 3.

ABC News - Demetrius Eugene Fleming was found on August 21.

ABC News - Kyle Bassinga was found in February.

ABC News - Trey Reed's death was ruled a suicide in September 2025.

ABC News - Dennoriss Richardson's death was ruled a suicide in September 2024.

WHY:

ABC News - The imagery of a rope and noose evokes the legacy of lynching and vigilante violence against Black people in the U.S.

ABC News - Christy Spivey believes her daughter's death was personal and not racially motivated.

HOW:

ABC News - Police and prosecutors have not provided a suspected motive for Tasia Fortune's death.

ABC News - A private autopsy was conducted for Dennoriss Richardson, finding his death consistent with a hanging.

(UPDATED September 17, 2026 14:00 UTC)

Tasia Fortune, a 29-year-old Black woman from Mississippi, was found hanging from a tree behind an abandoned home in Jackson, prompting an investigation into her death. Jarques Ratliff, a 51-year-old Black man, has pleaded not guilty to her murder, while nearly 60 members of Congress are demanding the Justice Department look into the hanging deaths of Black individuals, highlighting the painful legacy of lynching in the U.S. Christy Spivey, Tasia's mother, believes that her daughter's death was personal and not racially motivated, though police have yet to provide a suspected motive.