In March of 2014, in Tunica, Mississippi, 17-year-old Donterrius Jackson, a male, was shot and killed in front of his own home. The incident was the culmination of what his mother described as persistent cyberbullying. For months leading up to the fatal shooting, she reported that another young man had been posting death threats against her son online.
The individual accused of the crime was his classmate, Cortez Bass.
Following an investigation into the shooting, Bass was arrested and subsequently put on trial for the murder of Donterrius Jackson. He faced charges of murder and weapons possession.
During the trial, which began in June 2015, graphic details of the crime were presented, causing distress to some family members present in the courtroom. Jackson's mother expressed her determination to be a voice for her son and see justice served. The prosecution's case included testimony from the lead investigator who detailed the evidence found at the scene. While the alleged online threats were a significant part of the narrative surrounding the case, it was reported that they would not be shown in court because it could not be definitively proven that Bass was the one who posted them. The trial was expected to conclude within a few days of starting.
