Current:Home > ScamsMother's quest for justice continues a year after Black man disappeared-InfoLens
Mother's quest for justice continues a year after Black man disappeared
View Date:2024-12-23 10:28:28
The mother of Rasheem Carter, a Black man from Mississippi who went missing a year ago and whose partial remains were later found, is still seeking answers about what happened to her son.
Rasheem Carter, 25, went missing on Oct. 2, 2022, just days after telling his mother and the police that white men in his community were targeting him. Around a month later, Rasheem Carter's remains were found in a wooded area south of Taylorsville, Mississippi. His head was severed from his body, according to an independent autopsy.
The medical examiner has ruled that the cause and manner of death were undetermined. Officials investigating the case haven't updated Rasheem Carter's family on new developments for several months, according to Tiffany Carter, Rasheem Carter's mother.
"If you [official investigators] have done everything you can," Tiffany Carter told ABC News. "Why I still don't have an answer to what happened to my son?"
The Mississippi Crime Lab notified the family that additional remains found on Feb. 23 matched Rasheem Carter's DNA, according to a statement released by his family and their attorney, Ben Crump, in April.
MORE: DOJ opens civil rights investigation after Black man shot in face by deputy
"He told me on the phone that it was three trucks of white men trying to kill him," Tiffany Carter said. "As any citizen of this world, you're going to try to get to a place of safety. And I thought telling him to go to a place of safety was the right thing to do as a mother because I wasn't close enough to get him, myself."
Rasheem Carter notified police that he was concerned for his safety and visited the Taylorsville Police Department on two separate occasions leading up to his disappearance, according to Tommy Cox, chief of the Laurel Police Department, which filed the initial missing persons' case after the family came to them for help.
Taylorsville police did not immediately return ABC News' request for a statement.
In addition to Rasheem Carter's head being severed, his spinal cord was recovered in a separate area from his head, according to Crump.
"I know this, something horrific was done to my son," Tiffany Carter said. "God knows and God will deal with everyone accordingly to what they have done."
Tiffany Carter told ABC News that she and her family reached out to the Mississippi Medical Examiner's Office, which has taken over the autopsy of the remains, multiple times and has not received a response. The medical examiner's office did not immediately return ABC News' request for a statement.
Tiffany Carter said the family has not received Rasheem Carter's remains to this day. The Smith County Police Department originally ruled out foul play in the case. According to Crump, officials recanted their statement.
MORE: Police chief suspended over newspaper raid
Smith County Sheriff Joel Houston told ABC News in March that earlier evidence of the case "didn't suggest" any foul play, stressing that "nothing is being swept under the rug."
Rasheem Carter's family and attorneys have called for a federal probe from the U.S. Department of Justice into his death.
The Mississippi Bureau of Investigation is also investigating the incident. The MBI did not immediately respond to ABC News' request for comment.
Tiffany Carter told ABC News that she is especially worried for Rasheem Carter's 7-year-old daughter, who has become more withdrawn since the death of her father. She still reaches out to his old cell phone, Tiffany Carter said.
"She texts that number, 'Daddy, I love you. I love you,' all the time," Tiffany Carter said. "She listens to the videos and stuff that he sent her all the time. When I get her, my heart crushes every time cause she look just like him."
veryGood! (14198)
Related
- Lions find way to win, Bears in tough spot: Best (and worst) from NFL Week 10
- Gigi Hadid and Leonardo DiCaprio Reunite at Star-Studded Met Gala 2023 After-Party
- How the Search for Missing Mom Ana Walshe Led to Her Husband Being Charged With Murder: All the Details
- Nicola and Brooklyn Peltz Beckham Are Perfectly Posh at Met Gala 2023
- NYC bans unusual practice of forcing tenants to pay real estate brokers hired by landlords
- Vanessa Hudgens' Met Gala 2023 Look Is Proof She's Got Her Head in the Fashion Game
- Save 36% on the It Cosmetics Buildable, Blendable, Long-Lasting Eyeshadow Sticks
- Why Kylie Jenner Thinks It's Time for Her Family to Address the Beauty Standards They're Setting
- Florida man’s US charges upgraded to killing his estranged wife in Spain
- Get Smudge-Proof Voluminous Lashes for 36 Hours With This 2 Benefit Mascaras for the Price of 1 Deal
Ranking
- Mandy Moore Captures the Holiday Vibe With These No Brainer Gifts & Stocking Stuffer Must-Haves
- Ariana Madix Appears to React to Joke About Tom Sandoval at White House Correspondents' Dinner
- 40 Nordstrom Rack Mother's Day Gifts Under $50: Kate Spade, Nike, Philosophy, and More
- Raquel Leviss Admits to Sleeping Over at Tom Sandoval's in Bombshell Vanderpump Rules Preview
- Queen Elizabeth II's Final 5-Word Diary Entry Revealed
- Kate Spade 24-Hour Flash Deal: Get This $300 Backpack for Just $96
- Princess Anne Gives Rare Interview Ahead of King Charles III's Coronation
- Kourtney Kardashian Accuses Kim of Using Her Wedding as a Business Opportunity in Bombshell Trailer
Recommendation
-
Jennifer Garner and Boyfriend John Miller Are All Smiles In Rare Public Outing
-
Kim Kardashian Pokes Fun at Kendall Jenner’s NBA Exes
-
I Tried This $15 Crystal Hair Remover From Amazon—Here's What Happened
-
Lululemon's Mother’s Day Gift Guide Has Something for Every Type of Mom
-
Inflation ticked up in October, CPI report shows. What happens next with interest rates?
-
Is Jury Duty's Ronald Gladden Single? He Says...
-
Inside Taylor Swift's Gorgeous Friendship With Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds
-
Inside Taylor Swift's Gorgeous Friendship With Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds