Pheonecia Ratliff was 23 and a senior at Jackson State University when she was killed on the night of May 14, 2020. Described by those who knew her as delightful and as good as gold, she was a devoted mother whose young daughter was central to her life.

After finishing a shift at a local Subway with her younger sister, Pheonecia returned to her mother’s home and was ambushed by her ex-boyfriend and father of her child, 24-year-old Jamariquis Black. He tackled her as she exited her car, shot her sister in the thigh when she intervened, then forced Pheonecia into his vehicle. A high-speed police pursuit down I-55 ended near the 30-mile marker in Bogue Chitto when Black’s car crashed. During a subsequent standoff, Black shot and killed Pheonecia and then died of a gunshot wound.

Pheonecia had recently filed domestic violence and aggravated stalking charges against Black and he had been arrested on May 8, but was released on bond days before the killing. The case prompted the launch of Operation Pheonecia, a law enforcement effort addressing domestic violence in Mississippi.

Did anyone who knew Pheonecia or her daughter notice warning signs before May 14, 2020?