A crowd ranging from a few to 100 rallied over a shocking death in Palmdale, California, after the body of a 24-year-old Black man was found hanging from a tree not far from City Hall Friday morning in what authorities deemed a suicide.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department said the man was identified as Robert L. Fuller.
A man walking by Poncitlán Square at 3:39 a.m. saw the body in the 38300 block of Ninth Street East, and fire personnel were dispatched, authorities said.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Homicide Bureau and the Los Angeles County Coroner's Office responded to the scene, and said while an investigating is still ongoing, it appeared that he had hanged himself.
A dozen or so people began demonstrating in front of Palmdale City Hall early Friday after news of the death that some do not believe was a suicide.
Some placed teddy bears, candles, flowers, and notes at the tree.
#JusticeForRobertFuller was trending on Twitter, with many gathering near City Hall demanding a full investigation. Some also said authorities were too quick to call it a suicide.
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The coroner performed an initial autopsy, and then a second more thorough autopsy, with both pointing to suicide, officials said.
Sheriff's Homicide Lt. Brandon Dean said many calls had come in from the public, but he sees no evidence that it was not a suicide.
Palmdale's City Manager J.J. Murphy told the crowd he "wasn't going to duck" the issue, and answered as many questions as he could.
Those who had gathered told NBCLA they wanted to know who the person was who found Fuller, and they want to know why they haven't seen any video surveillance footage.
Detectives said they are still looking for footage, but there are no cameras within the park. Both Dean and Fuller's family say there is no indication he left a note or posted anything online.
Some of Fuller's family is in Nevada and it's not clear how long ago he moved to Palmdale.
Dean said a detective was communicating with a family member.
A GoFundMe account created to help the family with funeral costs had raised nearly $100,000 by Friday afternoon.
NBCLA has reached out to Fuller's family for comment.
