Minneapolis, MN
Family seeking answers in woman's suspicious death in Minneapolis
Family looks for answers in Mpls woman’s death
A family is mourning and looking for answers after 57-year-old Felisha Smith was found death outside a church in Minneapolis back in July. FOX 9’s Mike Manzoni has the story.
MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) – Nearly seven weeks after a woman was found dead on the side of a Minneapolis church her family is still searching for answers.
What happened?
Felisha Smith, 57, of Minneapolis, disappeared after she signed herself out of The Estates at Chateau, a long-term care facility where she lived, her family said.
She made her way to Chicago Lake Liquors on East Lake Street, they said. The next day, July 14, a pastor at Spirit of the Lord Church found her body on the side of the building, they said.
“[She was] covered with a blanket from the neck down, pants removed,” said her daughter Shari Smith.
Shari Smith said the medical examiner’s office said her mother was sexually assaulted before she was killed. She said when she identified her body she noticed trauma on her mother’s face.
The Hennepin County Medical Examiner’s Office hasn’t released a cause or manner of death.
What the family is saying
“She was a loving, kind, compassionate mother of nine children and just a wonderful, beautiful soul,”Shari Smith said.
She said her mother survived a shooting in 2014 that left her with a traumatic brain injury, and she fears someone may have taken advantage of her.
“My concerns are for community awareness, that the public be made aware that there’s someone on the loose who is doing horrific things,” Shari Smith continued.
What police are saying
Minneapolis police called the death suspicious, but didn’t elaborate.
They haven’t made any arrests.
Minneapolis, MN
Whitefish council creates proclamation in solidarity with city, citizens of Minneapolis
WHITEFISH, Mont. — The Whitefish City Council in February presented and signed a proclamation expressing solidarity with the city and citizens of Minneapolis.
The proclamation states that Whitefish mourns the loss of life that occurred in Minneapolis and stands in solidarity with its residents.
It reaffirms the city’s commitment to equal treatment under the law and emphasizes that peaceful protest is a fundamental American right.
The proclamation was supported by five of the six council members.
Mayor John Muhlfeld said the action was meant to reaffirm the city’s values.
“A mayoral proclamation that is supported by five of six City Council members supporting solidarity with the city and citizens of Minneapolis, Minnesota, and reaffirming our supportive, just, equal and welcoming community,” Muhlfeld said. “I think this is somewhat overdue. Our town’s been through a lot over the years, This is more importantly to reaffirm our values as a council with our community because we care deeply about you.”
Over the last year, Whitefish has faced criticism amid rising tensions surrounding the Department of Homeland Security.
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View the full proclamation below.
A Minneapolis man who pleaded guilty to murdering a high school student in 2022 was sentenced to nearly 30 years in prison on Monday.
It was the second time Cody Fohrenkam was sentenced for fatally shooting 15-year-old Deshaun Hill. He was convicted and sentenced to more than 38 years in prison in February 2023, but the Minnesota Court of Appeals later reversed the conviction and granted him a retrial based on illegally obtained incriminating statements.
Fohrenkam, 33, agreed to a plea deal as his second trial was set to start, pleading guilty to one count of second-degree intentional murder in exchange for Monday’s 340-month sentence. The judge presiding over the hearing gave him credit for 1,476 days already served.
Fohrenkam shot and killed Hill while Hill was walking to a bus stop just blocks from Minneapolis North High School, where Hill was a star quarterback and honor roll student.
One of Hill’s aunts said in a statement shortly before the judge sentenced Fohrenkam that her nephew was “full of life.”
“When he spoke, you listened. He had a soft spirit and a good heart,” she said. “Deshaun was an artist who, as you all know, he took his education seriously. He had dreams and goals. He worked hard to make his family proud.”
This story will be updated.
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