Ohio Governor Mike DeWine condemned the death of 20-year-old Wright State University student Pierre Damas Bel, who died by suicide on August 31, 2026, after Immigration and Customs Enforcement mandated an ankle monitor following the loss of his Temporary Protected Status. According to the Ohio State Highway Patrol Springfield Post, Bel parked his car on the shoulder of Interstate 70 westbound and walked into traffic, where a semi-truck struck him.
“This is a horrible, horrible tragedy,” Governor DeWine told reporters at the Ohio Statehouse on September 1, 2026, as reported by the Springfield News-Sun. DeWine publicly questioned the enforcement actions targeting Ohio’s Haitian population, asking reporters whether mass enforcement and the sight of community members facing deportation is what residents want done in their name. DeWine noted that Bel had graduated from high school locally, participated in the junior ROTC, and held clear academic ambitions.
Background on Immigration Status and Enforcement
Bel arrived in the United States in 2024 using the CBP One application and settled in Springfield with his parents and two brothers, according to Immigration and Customs Enforcement statements. He graduated from Springfield High School as an honor roll student and was recruited to play soccer at Wittenberg University before transferring to Wright State University. His family and immigration advocates stated that he lost his Temporary Protected Status at the end of July following a Supreme Court decision affecting roughly 300,000 Haitian nationals nationwide.
On July 29, 2026, ICE placed Bel in an alternatives to detention program requiring him to wear a GPS ankle monitor. In a July 30 social media post documented by local reporting, Bel expressed distress over the tracking device:
“I came to this country to pursue my education. I didn’t come here to commit a crime or hurt anyone,” Bel wrote on Instagram. “Yet now I’m walking through the streets of the United States with a GPS monitor on my leg, carrying a feeling of shame and humiliation that I never imagined I would experience.”
Family Account and Community Response
According to statements provided by Bel’s father, Bel called his father around 8:00 a.m. on Monday, August 31, from his car on Interstate 70. He expressed emotional distress regarding the ankle monitor and reported facing taunts and bullying at school after losing his athletic eligibility. His father instructed him to return home, but police arrived at the family’s door roughly three hours later.
Carl Ruby, a local pastor and immigration advocate, addressed reporters alongside community members, stating that Bel’s family wanted the public to understand the connection between his death and federal immigration policies. Ruby emphasized that the situation requires a political solution from elected officials.
When questioned by reporters, ICE stated via email that the agency does not comment on active cause-of-death investigations while pending, and declined to speculate on unverified claims regarding individuals.
If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available. In the United States, you can call or text 988 or chat at 988lifeline.org to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.
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