Authorities are now probing the recent hangings of six people of color in four states. Officials have ruled every case to be a suicide, but many fear some of the deaths might be modern-day lynchings. On Wednesday, police found a 17-year-old African American boy hanging from a tree in an elementary school playground in Spring, Texas. On Monday, a Latino man was found hanged in Houston. Hangings have also been reported in New York City; and in the California cities of Victorville and Palmdale. Meanwhile, a hate crime probe has begun in Oakland, California, after five nooses were found hanging from trees in the city.