Tasia Fortune: Arrest made after Black woman found hanging from tree

Jacques Ratliff was arrested in Jackson, Mississippi, after police secured search and arrest warrants in the death of Tasia Fortune, a 29-year-old Black woman found hanging from a tree on August 3. Officers didn't find Ratliff at the search location Friday afternoon; they picked him up walking along Capitol Street on their way back to headquarters. Police Chief RaShall Brackney called the arrest 'important' but not closure, saying additional arrests are expected.

The medical examiner's office ruled the death a homicide Thursday night, more than a month after the body was found and weeks after the autopsy was conducted. Fortune's mother, Christine Spivey, wrote on a GoFundMe update that the family was 'no closer' to answers than the day they learned of the death, citing a lack of communication from law enforcement.

The case lands amid rising scrutiny of how Mississippi authorities handle deaths of Black residents, including 18-year-old Nolan Wells and Trey Reed, whose 2025 death was ruled a suicide over his mother's objections. Over 50,000 people have signed a petition seeking an independent investigation into the state's chief medical examiner, and Rep. Jasmine Crockett has asked the Justice Department to investigate what she called 'possible modern-day lynchings.'

The full dispatch is available from the source below.