SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) — Former San Francisco 49ers quarterback will pay for an independent autopsy for a student found hanging from a tree on the campus of a Mississippi university.
Demartravion “Trey” Reed’s body was found at 7:05 a.m. on Monday. Sept. 15., according to campus police at Delta State University in Cleveland, Mississippi.
Investigators said there was no evidence of foul play and officials ruled the student’s death as a suicide. However, Reed’s family has called for an independent autopsy.
“We will seek answers independently from Delta State University and from the coroner’s office and, if need be, independent from the state coroner’s office because we need answer as to what happened to Trey Reed,” said family attorney Vaness J. Jones in a statement reported by USA Today.
On Friday, civil rights attorney Ben Crump announced that the Colin Kaepernick “Know Your Rights Camp Autopsy Initiative” would cover the cost of a second, independent autopsy for Reed. Reed’s family, according to Crump, will seek the autopsy as soon as Reed’s body is release by the state medical examiner.
“Trey’s death evoked the collective memory of a community that has suffered a historic wound over many, many years and many, many deaths,” said Crump. “Peace will come only by getting to the truth. We thank Colin Kaepernick for supporting this grieving family and the cause of justice and truth.”
Kaepernick spent six seasons with the 49ers after being a second-round pick in 2011. However, he has not played an NFL game since Jan. 1, 2017, after he began kneeling on the sideline at games during the national anthem to protest social injustice and police brutality.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.