Khaira Howard, 28, died on May 14 inside Women's Huron Valley Correctional Facility in Michigan, days before her scheduled release, according to reporting by the Detroit Free Press. In the months before her death, Howard had reportedly raised concerns about conditions at the prison — including alleged toxic mold — with the office of state Rep. Laurie Pohutsky and with a prison advocacy group.
Howard's case has drawn renewed attention to longstanding complaints from incarcerated women at Huron Valley about water intrusion, dampness, and visible mold inside housing units. Pohutsky's office has previously raised the issue publicly. The Michigan Department of Corrections has not, at the time of this writing, attributed Howard's death to mold exposure, and the official cause of death has not been released.
The story is also being covered by Michigan Advance, Michigan Public, and PressReader (syndicating the Detroit Free Press). The Mold Report will update coverage as the cause of death and any official response from MDOC become available.