A Mississippi family has finally funeralized and buried in a proper grave their loved one, a man who had been killed by an off-duty Jackson police officer and buried in a pauper’s field without notifying the family.
Civil rights leaders, activists, and politicians attended the homegoing, calling for someone to take accountability for his death and seeking justice for the grieving family.
Bettersten Wade, mother of Dexter Wade, was supported by hundreds, including her granddaughters, as she laid her son to rest.
The 37-year-old mysteriously went missing in March 2023. However, months later, it was discovered not only was he struck and killed by a Jackson police officer’s car as Wade was trying to cross Interstate 55 on foot, but his remains were laid to rest in grave No. 672 at the Hinds County Jail’s penal farm without anyone contacting his next of kin.
Now, with his body exhumed and placed under the care of the family, Dexter Wade was finally given a funeral of honor.
In addition to the family, civil rights lawyers Ben Crump and Dennis Sweet attended the event on Monday, Nov. 20, at New Horizon Church International. They have been supporting Bettersten Wade over the past few months, assisting in the exhumation of his body and organizing an independent autopsy.
The autopsy reportedly revealed a state ID card on Dexter Wade’s body, suggesting that law enforcement had information to contact his loved ones but opted not to do so.
Officiating the ceremony was Rev. Al Sharpton, who gave a warm eulogy that focused on the gaping hole left in the family because of Wade’s death. He noted how his two daughters would grow up without a father and stressed the importance of holding the city of Jackson and Hinds County accountable for this loss.
Sharpton said that in all of his years fighting against police-involved violence against Black people, he “never heard one like this.”
“His life mattered to his mama, to his…
Read the full article here
