Wade’s mother did not receive a death notification until five months after he had been identified
JACKSON, Miss. –– Nationally renowned civil rights and personal injury attorney Ben Crump has been retained by the mother of Dexter Wade, a 37-year-old man who was run over by a Jackson Police Department cruiser and died.
Wade left his mother’s house on the evening of March 5 and never returned. Wade’s mother reported him missing on March 14 and did not receive word that he was deceased until August 24. By the time Wade’s mother learned that he was dead, his body had been discharged by the morgue and buried in a pauper’s field.
Wade’s mother had persistently followed up for months with police to see if they had any indication to what happened to her son. An investigator from the coroner’s office identified Dexter using fingerprints and reportedly turned it over to Jackson Police to do the proper death notification on March 9. His mother did not receive any answers from authorities until August when he had been buried for months.
Attorney Crump has released the following statement:
“Dexter’s story is a living nightmare for any mother. The secrecy surrounding his death, the alleged concealment of vital information, and the callous burial in a pauper’s field without his mother’s knowledge are not just oversights – they are a grave miscarriage of justice. The fact that Dexter’s tragic end involved an off-duty police officer only deepens the wounds of this community and raises troubling questions about the integrity of those entrusted with upholding the law.
“In the face of this tragedy, we stand with Bettersten Wade and demand transparency, accountability, and justice for Dexter. Every life deserves dignity, and every grieving mother deserves the truth. We will not rest until the full truth is revealed, and those responsible for this injustice are held accountable. Dexter’s memory will not be forgotten, and his story will fuel our fight for a fair and just society where every life is valued and protected, regardless of who they are.”
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ABOUT BEN CRUMP LAW
Through his work, nationally renowned civil rights and personal injury attorney Ben Crump has spearheaded a legal movement to better protect the rights of marginalized citizens. He has led landscape-changing civil rights cases and represented clients in a wide range of areas including civil rights, personal injury, labor and employment, class actions, and more. Ben Crump Law is dedicated to holding the powerful accountable. For more information, visit bencrump.com.
