After 16-year-old Mikayla Miller was found dead last month near her home in Hopkinton, local police said that they did not suspect foul play. But since her death, Miller's family has taken to social media to question the official investigation and call attention to what they allege is a violent murder of a Black teen in a predominantly white town.
Today at a press conference, Middlesex County District Attorney Marian Ryan said her office was not ready to comment on the cause of Miller's death. But the girl's family is pushing back and calling for an independent investigation. Violence In Boston CEO and founder Monica Cannon-Grant and District Attorney Ryan joined Jim Braude on Greater Boston to discuss the case.
"There have been no conclusions reached in this case," Ryan said. "The most important question is, what was the cause and manner of Mikayla's death? That is a ruling made by the medical examiner — we haven't received that."
"The lack of communication has been the biggest issue in this case, with the family," Cannon-Grant said. "The frustration is this: If Mikayla was a white child and this was five Black children that engaged in this activity [the alleged assault before her death], not only would they have been charged for an assault, but they would have had their faces all over social media, the media and everywhere else. There's been a lack of transparency and accountability out of D.A. Ryan's office."
WATCH: D.A. Marian Ryan and Monica Cannon-Grant discuss the case of Mikayla Miller