Hopkinton Police Release 911 Call, Radio Transmissions And Logs In Mikayla Miller Death Investigation

HOPKINTON (CBS) -- Hopkinton police on Wednesday released new records in the death investigation of 16-year-old Mikayla Miller as her family calls for an independent probe. The release comes one day after the Medical Examiner ruled her death to be a suicide, with the cause of death "asphyxia by hanging."

The new records include radio transmission, police logs, dashcam video and the 911 call from the jogger who first reported her death. The 911 dispatcher can be heard relaying a call for a report of a possibly deceased person "hanging from a tree."

You can view and listen to the new records here on the Hopkinton police website.

"We are today releasing a number of records that have been requested by the public and approved for release," Hopkinton Police Chief Joseph Bennett said in a statement. "The Department has also met with District Attorney Marian Ryan's Office to ensure the release of these records will not adversely affect the ongoing investigation."

The 16-year-old was found dead April 18 in the woods off West Main Street near her home. Just hours before her death, investigators said she was involved in a confrontation with five other teens.

Mikayla's mother, Calvina Strothers, accused police of not properly investigating the death. She publicly claimed on social media that authorities were covering up the murder of her daughter at the hands of other teens implying she'd been bullied because she was Black and gay.

Nationally known Civil Rights attorney Ben Crump, whose recent high-profile cases include the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police, joined Miller's family later on Wednesday to call for an independent investigation into her death. Strothers reiterated her belief that there is no way Mikayla would have took her own life.

On Friday, demonstrators plan to converge on the Middlesex DA's office and again demand the investigation be turned over to the FBI.