On October 17th police officers from the St. Louis police department responded to a call saying that a man committed suicide in his own home. The man was twenty-four-year-old, Dayne Jones, and he died hanging in his backyard from a noose made of bed sheets. Jones was the son of Ferguson activist, Melissa McKinnies.
She believes that her son did not commit suicide, but rather he was lynched. She gives reasons why she believes this too, such as he packed a bag full of clothes to leave, he was beaten, he is also an activist, and he didn’t even know how to tie the knot he was eventually hung with. She took to Facebook with a series of uncensored posts showing her dead son and saying she “wants justice.” The pictures all though very graphic make a great point and McKinnies also said that “this is what she woke up too.” The police say they have not found anything to resemble it being a murder, but they are still investigating.
This case is huge in the black lives matter movement. To see one of the bright young activists, die, actually not only die but kill himself, is sure to cause major setbacks and frustration for everyone in the country. African-Americans will not like that he is not getting the publicity for a national murder and Caucasians will think that they will be reprimanded for a crime they did not commit.
No matter how anyone feels, Melissa McKinnie is almost certain he didn’t kill himself, as he just bought a new house and he has never shown any signs of depression. However, due to the past history in America, every death of a young black male leads to frustration with the cops. Recent past events have put the police on a hot seat when it comes to young black males. Mike Brown in Ferguson, Trayvon Martin in Florida, Anton Sterling, Baton Rouge, the list can go on and on.
With all of these tragedies, people have become skeptical of the police and it is a reason why people in St. Louis are ticked off about Jone’s death. The police originally did not investigate the case and they just ruled it a suicide for one reason or another. Mckinnies says that her son “didn’t even know how to tie the knot that he hung himself with” and that his life was prospering, so this case needs to be investigated more thoroughly. The legal way to solve this case is to first identify if it was a murder, if it was a murder it would be premeditated and the criminal would most definitely be sentenced to life. Next, if it is not a murder and then you must confirm a suicide. Dayne Jone’s phone and data would be collected to see if anyone assisted him in his suicide. If this is the case than that person would be charged with a serious case of voluntary manslaughter because of the laws in the state of Missouri (patientsrightscouncil.org).
I originally found this article whilst scrolling through twitter. A viral tweet by Avalon Fenster popped up on my timeline and it said that a young black man was lynched and the media did not cover it. The tweet went on to add his name three times in all capital letters to prove a point. I went and searched his name and it brought me to The Kansas City Star. Even though the Kansas City Star isn’t the first news corporation to break the story, I liked how neutral the reporter stood in thus article. The reporter responsible for breaking the news on this website was named Kaitlyn Alanis.
I believe Alanis did everything needed to make this article hard hitting, newsworthy, and unbiased. Alanis used original tweets, posts, and photos, to help conveying how important and delicate this case is to the entire country. A young African-American male was beaten, pants pulled down, and strung up to a tree branch, but the media doesn’t cover this? Maybe they don’t see this as newsworthy, but Alanis surely did and her un-bias article gives the readers the opportunity to think.
As reporters isn’t that the main goal, to give your audience the ability to draw conclusions in their own mind? This case is terrible either way, murder, or suicide. However, there is a bigger problem on the horizon. In the United States, people’s voices are not being heard. Melissa McKinnies only wants justice for Dayne Jones and she is not being done that.
In my personal opinion I believe that the article is ethical and I think it was very well written. Alanis presented facts and direct quotes that argued both sides and then said make up your mind on the situation. She did everything that was needed to be done to make an effective article. After finding the tweet that brought me to the website I was in shock.
Every historical death I have witnessed has changed my country completely and I just feel like this story is being buried because of that. Imagine if another Trayvon Martin was killed, the riots and scenes would be endless. I also find it very hard to believe this was a suicide, as photos of Jones show his pants pulled down and him beaten up. There is definitely something going on behind the scenes and it really makes me disgusted on the inside. The media output of this country is so tightly controlled and edited that we see only what they want us to see. As an aspiring journalist it is very important to learn from these cases.
Dayne Jone’s case should be seen by the whole entire country, yet not one major news television network has even said this young man’s name. If the St Louis police and the national media are burying this case because of possible repercussions I say that is extremely immoral and unethical. In addition, Alanis was very ethical and her article should be spread around the country to raise awareness for Melissa McKinnie’s son, Dayne Jone’s.
https://www.kansascity.com/news/state/missouri/article220944040.html
Robbie Pratka 