After a 16-year-old girl was found dead hanging from a tree on April 18 in Hopkinton, a town 30 miles west of Boston, Massachusetts, the Middlesex District Attorney’s Office announced it's amending the investigation to focus on the suspicious circumstances of her death.

“The death of Mikayla Miller is a tragedy and an unimaginable loss for her family and the entire community,” a statement from District Attorney Marian Ryan read. “We know that everyone mourning her is seeking answers. Our investigation into the events of April 17-18, 2021, remains open. While we await a ruling on the cause and manner of death from the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, we will continue gathering information and interviewing witnesses. As this investigation unfolds, we will continue to update Mikayla’s family and their representatives.”

The death of Mikayla Miller is a tragedy and an unimaginable loss for her family and the entire community. We know that everyone mourning her is seeking answers. Our investigation into the events of April 17-18, 2021, remains open. Full statement below: pic.twitter.com/3W3mtUxH4v

— DA Marian Ryan (@DAMarianRyan) May 2, 2021

At around 7:45 a.m. on April 18, Miller's body was found hanging from a tree by a jogger, off of a trail near the apartments where she resided.

Initially, a spokesperson for Ryan’s office said Miller’s death was not viewed as suspicious, but that the case was “open and active,” the MetroWest Daily News reported.

In a statement, the 16-year-old’s mother wrote that the Hopkinton police failed to properly log incidents pertaining to her daughter's death.

“The Hopkinton police did not log either the incident when my daughter was ambushed now when she was found dead,” the statement read. “The state police did NOT conduct an investigation or speak to the persons involved.”

She also said that Sergeant Sean O’Brien of the Millbury Police Barracks advised her not to take the story of the teen’s death to the media, otherwise her “sexuality” would be exposed. Miller identified as a part of the LGBTQ+ community.

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