‘She did not do this to herself’: Family demands answers after daughter is found hanging from tree in Mississippi

Tasia Fortune’s mother says her daughter appeared to be “at peace” when they last saw each other as Jackson police investigate her death.

The family of Tasia Fortune is demanding answers after the 29-year-old Black mother of four was found hanging from a tree in Jackson, Mississippi, last week.

Fortune’s body was discovered Aug. 3 in the backyard of an abandoned house along the Road of Remembrance, according to ABC News. Jackson police have described the case as an “active death investigation,” and the Mississippi State Medical Examiner’s Office is conducting an autopsy to determine the cause and manner of her death. 

For Fortune’s mother, Christy Spivey, the circumstances surrounding her daughter’s death are difficult to reconcile with the woman she last saw days earlier.

“I know my daughter and she did not do this to herself,” Spivey told ABC News when asked whether she believed Fortune could have died by suicide.

Spivey said she last saw Fortune, who had lived in Mississippi for more than a decade, on July 26, when her daughter traveled to Kentucky for a family reunion. She described Fortune’s state of mind at the time as markedly better than it had been previously.

“She was better than I had seen her in a long time,” Spivey said. “She was at peace.”

Spivey also remembered her daughter as someone who gave generously despite having little herself.

“This has just devastated us,” she said. “Tasia was strong-minded, she was full of laughs and love, she had faith in God … She had so little and gave so much.” 

The circumstances have also drawn the attention of Jackson City Council member Kenneth Stokes, who sent a letter to U.S. Attorney Baxter Kruger requesting federal assistance with the investigation. The letter initially described the victim as an unidentified woman before authorities confirmed Fortune’s identity. 

Authorities have not publicly identified any persons of interest, and police have not released additional details about the investigation.

As Fortune’s family waits for answers, police are asking anyone with information about her death to contact Crime Stoppers. The family has set up a GoFundMe to help support her children.