Medical Examiner Rules Haitian Woman's Hypothermia Death a Homicide

The Allegheny County Medical Examiner's Office ruled the death of Daphy Michel a homicide on June 12, 2026. Michel, a 31-year-old Haitian national, was found unresponsive in a Pittsburgh bus shelter on March 2. The office listed hypothermia as the cause of death and stated the manner indicated actions by another individual.

Michel was released from ICE custody on February 27, three days before her death. The medical examiner described her as a vulnerable adult with untreated severe mental health issues and a significant language barrier at the time of release. She had arrived at the southern border in 2022 and received humanitarian parole.

Joseph Patrick Murphy, the attorney representing Michel's family, said she had a hearing scheduled for two weeks after her death. He stated she was arrested last summer for yelling at imaginary people and spent six months in Washington County Jail awaiting her first hearing. Multiple psychiatric examinations were conducted during that period, he said.

A magistrate declined to hold Michel for trial on the charges involving imaginary people, Murphy said. ICE then arrested her in her cell, placed an ankle monitor on her, and transported her 25 miles to Pittsburgh. She was wearing September clothing when released in February, he said.

"She was in September clothes and it was February, and the weather overwhelmed her and she went into hypothermia," Murphy said. He added that the homicide ruling means somebody did or failed to do something that brought about her death. Murphy stated he expects Michel's family to sue ICE.

Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Lauren Bis said ICE had nothing to do with Michel's death. She stated Michel passed away three days after ICE encountered her. Bis described Michel as an illegal alien from Haiti placed in removal proceedings after her arrest.