Concord Police Cite Depression in Hanging Death of Black Man

A young black man, whose hanging death sparked a continuing controversy among civil rights activists, had suggested just before he died that he might throw himself in front of a car, according to police.

Police, who previously ruled the death a suicide, also said Timothy Lee’s roommate told investigators the fashion design student was depressed for days before his body was found hanging from a tree near a transit station Nov. 2.

Lee’s sister, Tammy, and the National Assn. for the Advancement of Colored People asked police and the FBI to re-examine the case, saying Lee was too happy to take his own life. They said a poorly written note found near the body was a forgery or had been written under duress.

Murder Theory

The theory that Lee might have been murdered gained support when it was noted that two white men in Ku Klux Klan robes attacked a black man within a few miles of the Bay Area Rapid Transit station several hours before Lee’s body was found. At least two residents living near the station reported they heard screams and the sound of people running that night.

Last week, a handwriting expert in Los Angeles suggested that Lee’s roommate, Russell Wright, forged the note, but police discounted that theory and said Wright was never a suspect.

In a report to police last week, Wright said he gave a false statement last December when he described Lee as “basically” happy.

In the report, Wright told police, “I wrote the statement (last December) because I thought I couldn’t face her (Tammy) with the truth. But the truth is I remember his depression and low-keyed behavior a week prior to his death. He seemed to be down and easily upset.”

Stranded in Concord

Lee called Wright at their Berkeley apartment the night he died, saying he had fallen asleep on a BART train and found himself stranded in Concord when the system closed. He asked Wright to help him find a ride home.

Wright, who doesn’t own a car, said he was unable to help his roommate and asked Lee what he planned to do. “Maybe I’ll throw myself in front of a car,” Lee responded, according to Wright’s statement.

Police Capt. Bob Evans said two other roommates and another of Lee’s friends agreed that Lee was depressed, although others disagree.

Evans said new evidence also suggests Lee was having trouble with his fashion career. His last grades before quitting the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising were one A, two C’s, and two F’s, according to Evans, who has been unable to substantiate the family’s claim that Lee had gotten a scholarship to study fashion in Milan.