Two black men have been found hanging from trees in California, only 50 miles away from each other, and less than two weeks apart. Authorities have said in each case that no foul play is suspected, but those rulings haven’t sat well with either of the men’s families.
The families of Malcolm Harsch and Robert Fuller are calling for independent investigations into how the men died.
Malcolm Harsch, 38, was found dead, hanging from a tree on the morning of May 31, near a homeless encampment where he was staying in Victorville, California.
The Victorville Fire Department was called to the scene, and when they arrived, bystanders were performing CPR on Harsch. Firefighters took over and continued CPR for 20 more minutes, but they were unable to revive him.
“There were no indications at the scene that suggested foul play; however, the cause and manner of death are still pending,” Sheriff’s Spokeswoman Jodi Miller told Victor Valley News.
An investigation is ongoing, according to the spokeswoman for the San Bernardino County Sheriff-Coroner’s Department. “His cause of death has not been released to the family yet, but we are concerned that his death will be labeled as a suicide, as this is what was communicated to us upon confirmation of his death on the morning of June 1,” the family said in a statement to Victor Valley News.
The family feels that suicide is not a plausible explanation for Harsch’s death. According to the family, he was not depressed and had recently expressed excitement overseeing his children.
“There are many ways to die, but considering the current racial tension, a black man hanging himself from a tree definitely doesn’t sit well with us right now. We want justice, not comfortable excuses,” the family told the paper.
Then last week in Palmdale, California, Robert Fuller, 24, was found hanging in a tree across from city hall, according to Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.⠀⠀
His death was originally ruled a suicide by hanging, but under mounting pressure, an autopsy has been ordered, according to the New York Times.
At a rally for Fuller in Palmdale on Saturday, his sister, Diamond Alexander, said that “everything that they’ve been telling us has not been right.”
“My brother was not suicidal,” his sister said.⠀⠀
According to a press release from authorities, although the investigation into Fuller’s death is continuing, authorities stated that “Mr. Fuller, tragically, committed suicide.”
A petition for Fuller on change.org, which is demanding a “full and transparent investigation by Palmdale PD,” has garnered over 247,000 signatures to date.
As protests against racism and police brutality are held across the nation in the wake of the death of George Floyd, it’s clear that trust in law enforcement is extremely low right now. That low level of trust has left these families and community activists calling for an independent investigation into what exactly happened to these men.
Discover more from Baller Alert
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
