Immediately after reports of Reed’s death circulated, civil rights activists pushed for a thorough investigation, citing Mississippi’s long and bloody history of lynchings, including the brutal death of Emmett Till in 1955.
On Wednesday, the Mississippi state examiner conducted an autopsy that ruled out foul play in Reed’s death. The Cleveland City Police Department has reportedly handed their findings over the FBI, which said they’re willing to investigate further if evidence “if, during the course of the local investigation, information comes to light of a potential federal violation.”
On Friday, Crump announced that Kaepernick, a vocal advocate against police brutality and racial injustice, will be paying for an independent autopsy on Reed’s body as soon as it’s released from the state medical examiner. The money will be coming from Kaepernick’s Know Your Rights Camp’s Autopsy Initiative, which provides free, second autopsies for those whose loved ones have died in police custody or under other suspicious circumstances.


