Hannah Grace Cobb
Source: Burke County Sheriff’s Office / Burke County Sheriff’s Office

Last week, a grand jury in Burke County, Georgia, dismissed charges against 25-year-old Hannah Cobb, who, in February, was charged with involuntary manslaughter in the death of her boyfriend, 30-year-old Telvin Osborne. It was a case that had immediately drawn attention from bloggers and others on social media, largely because Cobb’s story as to how she ended up fatally shooting her boyfriend appeared to be inconsistent, leading people to doubt it was the freak accident she initially claimed it was. And, of course, since Cobb is a white woman and Osborne is a Black man, the fear that the justice system would fail the victim loomed large — that is, until internet sleuths began to unearth Osborne’s old tweets, which made it clear his disdain for Black women.

But before we get into all that, let’s go over Cobb’s case. As we previously reported, at around 5:45 a.m. on Feb. 23, Burke County sheriff’s deputies found Osborne’s body in the master bedroom of the couple’s home with a single gunshot wound in his chest. Cobb, who was arrested on Feb. 25, claimed she was cleaning her gun and “it accidentally went off,” but that story soon shifted.

From 11 Alive:

Although Cobb stated it was an accident, the Burke County sheriff told the Augusta station that Osborne’s death was not classified as accidental and that both Osborne and Cobb had been drinking. The sheriff also said there was an altercation before the shooting. 

Cobb was eventually charged with felony involuntary manslaughter and arrested. She was granted a $25,000 bond under conditions. A March hearing revealed conflicting accounts in the deadly shooting of Osborne, WRDW/WAGT reported. 

Ring camera footage showed Cobb telling Osborne to leave. She later told investigators he returned with a knife and threatened her. Prosecutors said she locked him out, received threatening texts, and fled to the bathroom. When he forced his way in, she allegedly fired one shot.

So, on April. 24, the case was presented to a grand jury, which returned with a “no bill” decision, meaning there would be no charges.

After the decision was handed down last Friday, the Burke County Sheriff’s Office released a statement addressing “rumors circulating on social media regarding potential rioting in Waynesboro” that night. 

“It is important to understand that the grand jury is a legal body tasked with hearing all evidence presented in a case before reaching a decision. While we recognize that this outcome may be upsetting or unpopular to some, we strongly urge everyone to refrain from actions that could further harm our community,” the statement read. “The Burke County Sheriff’s Office remains committed to protecting all citizens and visitors in our county. Any acts of violence or rioting will not be tolerated and will be handled accordingly under the law.”

As it turned out, there were no reported riots that night or any night since. In fact, there weren’t any reported protests on Osborne’s behalf at all. 

It’s hard to say why the story of Hannah Cobb and Telvin Osborne never gained the same traction as similar stories, such as that of  Christian “Toby” Obumseli, who was fatally stabbed inside a luxury apartment building, One Paraiso, in Miami’s Edgewater neighborhood on April 3, 2022, by his white girlfriend, Courtney Clenney. Cobb and Osborne’s case could have polarized America the same way Karmelo Anthony’s story has, but it never really took root in mainstream news the same way.

As far as getting attention from the Black collective, the couple’s story was doomed from the start, because once Black women found out that Osborne reportedly made several disparaging tweets about Black women over the years, including a comment that he’d “rather sleep with a dog than a Black woman,” and they let it be known early on that they would be minding their own business instead of going to bat for a “self-hating” Black man.

Some of Osborne’s family members responded to the backlash in ways that indicate misogynoir might have been a family affair.

“Let this Telvin Osborne killing be a lesson to all the self-hating men and women of the Black community,” one Black woman tweeted in February. “You come out here on social media or in the real world proclaiming how much you hate the people of your community and, in his case, his hate of Black women, please know we will not be out here raising a word or finger. He went out the way he wanted to. Hopefully, the white dogs and white women of America will have his back.”

And maybe that is, indeed, the lesson here. Telvin Osborne’s death was tragic, and certainly nothing to celebrate, but if a Black man got lynched after gleefully expressing his support for the Ku Klux Klan, no one would question why Black people opted not to rally behind him.

We have to apply that same logic to Black men who disrespect Black women while praising their white counterparts. When racial injustice happens to Black men, Black women show up nine times out of ten.

That tenth time? Well, that’s just what happens when Black women receive hate or indifference instead of reciprocity. 

SEE ALSO:

Georgia Woman Charged With Involuntary Manslaughter After Black Boyfriend Found Shot Dead

Shanelle Booker Becomes 1st Black Woman Appointed To Acting US Attorney For The Middle District Of Georgia