Social Justice
Internal investigation announced into the handling of Lauren Smith-Fields case
The announcement comes after Smith-Fields family claims racial insensitivity by the Bridgeport police department and announced their plans to sue.
The mayor of Bridgeport, Connecticut has announced there will be an internal investigation into the police department’s handling of Lauren Smith-Fields death case.
Internal investigation into Lauren Smith-Fields death case
“There is no tolerance for anything less than respect and sensitivity for family members and their loss,” Mayor Joe Ganim said in a statement. “To that end, this matter has been referred to the Office of Internal Affairs to conduct a full and fair investigation.”
The announcement comes after Smith-Fields family claims racial insensitivity by the Bridgeport police department and announced their plans to sue.
Mysterious Death
Smith-Fields, 23, was found dead on December 12th in her bed following a date with an older white man she met on the dating app Bumble.
Smith-Fields mother, Shantell Fields, said she went to her daughter’s apartment when she couldn’t reach her. When she arrived, there was a note on the door.
“When I got there, there was a note on the door saying, ‘If you’re looking for Lauren, call this number,'” she told CBS News.
She called and no one answered.
Days later, she finally received a call from a detective. The detective informed the family Smith-Fields was found dead a day and a half earlier, but they failed to reach out to her family.
When Smith-Fields’ family questioned the police about their failure to notify her next of kin, Lauren’s brother, Tavar Gray-Smith, told “CBS Mornings” that the detective told them, “We didn’t need to reach out to any family member – we had her passport and her ID, so we knew who she was, and had already performed an autopsy, and her body is at the medical examiner’s office.”
Gray-Smith also said that the detective hung up on him and Smith-Fields’ father.
The detective has since been removed from the case, the family said.
But that is just the tip of the iceberg.
The police department took nearly a month to investigate after social media pressure.
Smith-Fields’ family claims there are inconsistencies in the police report and police mishandled the case, leaving key items at the scene — like the cups she and the man had been drinking out of, bloody sheets, and a bottle of pills found near her bed — from her apartment unexamined.
The police also failed to detain the man Smith-Fields was with when she was found deceased.
The man Lauren Smith-Fields was with upon her death
The man Smith-Fields was with has been identified as Matthew LaFountain. In a police report obtained by Rolling Stone, LaFountain said he woke up next to Smith-Fields the morning following their date and called the police when he found her unresponsive, with blood coming out of her nose. He told police he observed some peculiar behavior during their date, including Smith-Fields going into the bathroom to vomit and going outside her apartment for several minutes to see her brother. LaFountain later told an officer “he thought it was odd, but didn’t feel it was his place to say anything as he didn’t know her that well”.
Smith-Fields brother told NBC Connecticut when he questioned the police about LaFountain, they told him he was not a suspect.
“When I asked the officer about the guy, he said he was a very nice guy and they weren’t looking into him anymore. It was almost like he was sticking up for him and it seemed weird to hear that from a detective,” her brother Lakeem Jetter said.
Cause of death
On Monday, the medical examiner’s office said Smith-Fields died of “acute intoxication due to the combined effects of fentanyl, promethazine, hydroxyzine, and alcohol,” and ruled her death an accident.
Updated policies
Mayor Ganim also announced Monday that Bridgeport will be updating its policies on family death notifications.
“Death notifications should be done in a manner that illustrates dignity for the deceased and respect and compassion for the family,” he said. “Therefore, I will work with the Chief of Police to make appropriate changes here in Bridgeport to our department’s policies and practices regarding notifying family members of a death. I support and add my voice to the family, community, and elected officials who are calling for state legislation on this issue.”
Path forward
In an interview with Roland Martin Unfiltered, Smith-Fields family lawyer Darnell Crosland said the family intends to sue.
A GoFundMe page has been set up to raise funds as they plan to hire a private investigator to look into Smith-Fields’ death.
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Social Justice
San Francisco man victim of two hate crime incidents
San Francisco’s Harvey ‘Terry’ Williams was a victim of not one, but two hate crimes and has launched a GoFundMe to protect his family.
San Francisco’s Harvey ‘Terry’ Williams was a victim of not one, but two hate crimes.
San Francisco hate crime
On the morning of April 26th, he was delivered a package containing a black doll with a noose wrapped around its neck, with his name and a picture of his face. The doll, along with the other contents of the package, were covered in horrifying racial phrases and slurs.
A week later, he received a second racist package containing similar items, but this time the threats were escalated.
San Francisco police say they’re investigating both incidents.
Neighbors have rallied behind Williams, helping him build a network of security cameras to help keep a closer eye on their area.
GoFundMe
A GoFundMe was launched to help pay for security cameras, help Terry relocate until the police know more, and help take some financial pressure off the family during a very difficult and scary time.
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Social Justice
Family of Black teen shot in head after ringing doorbell of wrong home sues gunman and HOA
The family of the Ralph Yarl, the Black teenager who was shot in the head after ringing the doorbell of the wrong home in Kansas City, Missouri, last year, has filed a lawsuit against the White man who shot him and the residential homeowners association where the house is located.
The family of Ralph Yarl has filed a civil lawsuit against Andrew Lester, the 85-year-old white man who shot the teen last year on his doorstep, along with Lester’s homeowners association.
Ralph Yarl family sues
The lawsuit, filed by Yarl’s mother Cleo Nagbe in the circuit court of Clay County, Missouri, accuses Lester and the Highland Acres Homes Association, Inc. of “careless and negligent conduct.”
“At all times relevant, Plaintiff (Ralph Yarl) never posed or issued a threat to Defendant, Andrew Lester,” the lawsuit states, adding the Highland Acres Homes Association “was aware of or should have been aware of Defendant, Andrew Lester’s, propensity for violence, access to dangerous weapons and racial animus.”
Yarl’s mother said in a news release that the case is not just about seeking justice for her son. By including the Highland Acres Homes Association, Inc., Nagbe said the lawsuit “underscores the importance of collective responsibility in safeguarding our communities.”
“Their knowledge of a potentially dangerous individual in the neighborhood without taking adequate precautions is unacceptable,” Nagbe wrote. “This case is not just about seeking justice for Ralph but about advocating for systemic changes that prioritize the safety and well-being of all children.”
Nagbe said she also hopes the civil suit will create a conversation about the “importance of responsible gun ownership and community safety measures of using words, not weapons.”
Suspect
Lester has pleaded not guilty to charges of first-degree assault and armed criminal action.
He was released on $200,000 bond and his trial is set to begin October 7.
Ralph Yarl shooting incident
On April 13, 2023, Ralph Yarl, now 17, went to the wrong home while trying to pick up his younger siblings. After ringing the doorbell, Ralph was shot in the head and arm.
Lester was detained the night of the shooting but released two hours later. After a public outcry, he was arrested and charged nearly a week later.
The 85-year-old claims he was scared to death of the boy’s size. Meanwhile, Yarl is 5ft8in and 140 pounds.
Yarl survived the shooting with serious injuries. Those close to the family said he had a prognosis of a full recovery, but may possibly suffer long-term brain issues.
According to the civil lawsuit, the teenager “suffered and sustained permanent injuries, endured pain and suffering of a temporary and permanent nature, experienced disability and losses of normal life activities, was obligated to spend large sums of money for medical and attention and suffered other losses and damages.”
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Crime & Justice
Paramedic involved in Elijah McClain’s death sentenced to probation, work release and community service
Jeremy Cooper, a former paramedic who injected Elijah McClain with a fatal dose of ketamine, has been sentenced to probation and community service.
Jeremy Cooper, a former paramedic who injected Elijah McClain with a fatal dose of ketamine, has been sentenced to probation and community service.
Paramedic Jeremy Cooper sentenced
He had faced up to three years in prison but was sentenced to four years probation, 14 months of work release and 100 hours of community service.
Cooper and another paramedic, Peter Cichuniec, were found guilty of criminally negligent homicide in December in the death of McClain, 23, who was subdued by police and injected with ketamine on August 24, 2019.
Both paramedics had pleaded not guilty to the felony charges. Cichuniec was sentenced in March to five years in prison, the minimum.
Police stop turns fatal
McClain was walking home in August 2019 when the 23-year-old Black man was confronted by police officers who forcibly restrained him. When Aurora Fire Rescue paramedics Jeremy Cooper and Peter Cichuniec arrived, they injected him with ketamine.
He went into cardiac arrest in an ambulance a few minutes later and died three days after that.
The McClain family sued the city of Aurora for Elijah’s wrongful death and received a $15 million settlement.
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Unheard Voices Magazine LLC is a news reporting platform covered under Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research.
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