6. Lauren Smith-Fields: When the System Decides Too Fast

This is I Fear You, Babe — Bonus Episode.In December 2021, Lauren Smith-Fields, a 23-year-old Black woman from Bridgeport, Connecticut, was found dead in her apartment after a man she had met the night before called 911.Within hours, police publicly suggested there was no foul play.No full investigation.No preserved crime scene.No immediate answers for her family.This bonus episode examines how quickly Lauren’s death was categorized—and how that decision shaped everything that followed. We walk through the initial police response, the failures in evidence handling, the role of bias in early assumptions, and the long fight her family endured simply to be heard.This is not a whodunit.It’s an examination of process, power, and what happens when the system prioritizes closure over truth.This episode exists because some stories demand space outside the usual structure—when the crime isn’t just what happened in a room, but what failed to happen afterward.Show Notes / ReferencesBridgeport Police Department incident reportsMedical Examiner preliminary and amended findingsFamily attorney statements and filingsConnecticut State Police review documentationDOJ civil rights inquiry announcementsAssociated Press investigative reportingNew York Times coveragePublic statements from the Smith familySupport the show