An autopsy from the Mississippi State Medical Examiner’s Office concluded that a black student died of suicide in a tree at Triangle State University.
The Cleveland Police Department, where the campus is located, announced the findings in a press release. It said the autopsy results were consistent with the initial examination of the body by the Bolivar County coroner, who found no evidence of a foul.
The 21-year-old student’s death was discovered earlier on Monday and immediately sparked a strong sentiment in the Southern State with a history of racist violence.
Even before the autopsy was announced, the students’ families and their lawyers called for independent autopsy and implored police to show them any security camera recordings and other videos as evidence. Civil rights attorney Ben Crump said he will lead the independent investigation.
Crump’s office did not immediately return an email Thursday for comment.
Cleveland police have released no details of the autopsy findings except that the cause of death was hung and the way of death was ruled to be suicide. It said the results of the toxicology test are still pending and may take weeks.
Police are still investigating the death of the student and the evidence files in the case are being shared with the FBI and federal prosecutors, the statement said.
U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson, a Democrat in Mississippi, had previously called on the FBI to investigate.
