As confirmed by Pittsburgh Action News 4, Daphy Michel, a 31-year-old asylum seeker from Haiti, was found unresponsive at a Pittsburgh bus shelter just shortly after 10:00 a.m. on March 2. Her older brother, Carlo, is looking for answers following her sudden death after she was handed over to ICE’s custody following her release from the Washington County Jail.
Port Authority Police stated that maintenance workers at the Monongahela Incline, a type of cable railway system under the Smithfield Street Bridge, spotted Michel lying on the ground of a bus shelter not breathing and with no pulse on Monday morning. According to Port Authority Police, officers attempted life-saving measures using CPR, an AED, and Narcan before Michel was taken to UPMC Presbyterian Hospital in critical condition.
Before her death, Michel was at the Washington County Jail in Washington, PA, for nearly six months on a $10,000 bond. Court documents show that one of Michel’s neighbors reported that she was experiencing mental health episodes in September last year. After having her preliminary hearing continued seven times while awaiting a mental health evaluation, she finally appeared before a judge on February 26.
At the hearing, the judge dismissed Michel’s two misdemeanor harassment and threat charges. According to WTAE, her brother was relieved and waited for the call of his sister’s release to be processed.
However, just four days after the dismissal of her charges, he would instead receive a call from UPMC Hospital.