Janelle D. James/bridge Michigan, The associated Press

Federal and state lawmakers are calling on Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to intervene at Michigan’s only women’s prison after a third inmate in less than a month died Saturday, intensifying scrutiny over conditions and medical care at the Huron Valley Correctional Facility.

Ashley Hoath of Hillsdale County was rushed to Trinity Health Ann Arbor Hospital, about 15 minutes from the prison, where she was pronounced dead, Jenni Riehle, spokesperson for the Michigan Department of Corrections, confirmed in an email.

Earlier Saturday, an officer had noticed Hoath wasn’t feeling well and promptly escorted her to a healthcare unit within the prison, where medical staff determined she needed to be sent to the hospital, according to Riehle.

The 36-year-old’s death is the third inmate death since May 13. Khaira Howard, 28, died on May 13 and Rebecca Fackler, 57, died on May 17.

The deaths have prompted bipartisan calls for Michigan Department of Corrections Director Heidi Washington to resign.

And now, fellow Democrat and US Rep. Debbie Dingell is urging Whitmer to “direct every appropriate effort” to address concerns “raised repeatedly by women in custody, their families, advocates, attorneys, medical professionals, and the public.”

“Too many continue to report that the underlying problems remain unsolved,” Dingell wrote in a Monday letter to Whitmer. “It is essential that you give this issue your immediate attention and take urgent action to address the serious issues threatening the safety of these women under MDOC supervision.”

The governor’s office responded by repeating a statement first released in May, following the deaths of Rebecca Fackler and Khaira Howard:

“The health and safety of those under MDOC’s supervision must always be their top priority,” said Whitmer spokesperson Bobby Leddy.

“The governor has directed MDOC to conduct a swift, thorough, and transparent investigation. This process will include a careful assessment by an independent medical examiner. When this process is complete, we will release the results of the investigation. Families deserve to have the answers they need during the grieving process.”

In a separate statement, Washington said MDOC is “working aggressively to investigate the circumstances that led up to Ms. Hoath being sent to the hospital.”

“We ask the public, out of respect for the family, to refrain from speculation without the facts, while investigations are conducted. I can promise you that the community will have answers to what caused this death, and the ones that have preceded it.”

Riehle, the MDOC spokesperson, said the department is working to “expedite the investigations into the recent deaths” at Huron Valley.

“During a briefing held earlier today, legislators and stakeholders were informed that the department has been in discussions with our legal team regarding the request to issue the findings of the mold testing that was conducted at WHV as part of ongoing litigation,” she said in a statement. “The department has requested a summary of the findings from the third-party expert who conducted the tests and the department will release them as soon as they are received.”

Bridge Michigan requested the report from the most recent environmental testing under the Freedom of Information Act on May 28. The department denied the request on June 4, saying the records are are exempt from disclosure due to attorney-client privilege.

Three deaths

The three recent inmate deaths at the women’s prison are an unusually high number. There were only four prisoner deaths at the facility in all of 2025 and three in 2024, according to critical incident reports submitted to the state legislature by the MDOC.

State Rep. Laurie Pohutsky, D-Livonia, who has been leading calls for action at the prison, said she was at the correctional facility on Friday evening to visit another inmate and was notified of Hoath’s death Saturday afternoon.

“The conditions of confinement, inadequate access to medical care, and reported retaliation against those women brave enough to speak out are intolerable,” she wrote in a social media post.

“The state’s response has been woefully inadequate. Legislative oversight alone is not enough. Michigan’s correctional facilities are in a crisis that demands concerted action by the Department and the attention of our governor.”

In the case of both Fackler and Howard, the department confirmed the women died after life-saving measures were taken by prison staff as well as emergency medical technicians who had arrived on the scene.

David Champine, whose firm is representing women in a related lawsuit, said he received reports that Fackler recently had surgery and sought medical care but the corrections staff prohibited her from going to a health care unit.

Prison records indicate Fackler was serving 3 to 20 years for home invasion in 2000, then charged with four counts of assault at the prison in 2012.

Howard had been in a medical observation cell. Records indicate she was sent to prison last year for stealing credit cards from the mail and other financial crimes

Her attorney said she had been eligible for parole since March 5, but the department failed to enroll her in the programming required for release, delaying her parole, which had been rescheduled to the week of May 25.

Shaquilla DeShields, Howard’s mother, expressed concern that her daughter was not receiving her schizophrenia medication. During their last video visit on April 30, DeShields said Howard told her she was being held in observation and that they wouldn’t let her out.

Howard “cried out for help” and they ignored her, DeShields recently told Bridge. “Would they do that if it were their child?”

The state previously said it did not suspect foul play in Howard or Fackler’s deaths.

Calls for resignation

The Huron Valley Correctional Facility has faced months of scrutiny over living conditions, including overcrowding, poor ventilation and allegations of toxic mold.

Even before the third death at the women’s prison this weekend, state lawmakers were calling for Washington to resign over conditions at the facility and other issues.

“Significant policy and culture change must occur” within the department, but it has “become abundantly clear to each of us that such change cannot and will not occur under your leadership as director,” Pohutsky wrote in a May 21 letter to Washington that was signed by more than 30 current and former lawmakers from both major political parties.

“In the over a decade that you have served as Director of the Michigan Department of Corrections … inmates have died due to suicide, preventable health conditions and dehydration,” the letter continued.

On Saturday evening, Democratic US Senate candidate and former Wayne County Health Director Abdul El-Sayed called the situation at the women’s prison a “ public health emergency ” and said he thinks “Heidi Washington must be held accountable and removed.”

Advocates and lawmakers have urged Gov.Whitmer to grant clemency to another inmate, Krystal Clark, arguing she is suffering from severe medical issues tied to mold exposure at the correctional facility.

Clark, who has repeatedly complained about mold since 2016, tested positive in 2023 for Aspergillus niger — a common black mold — and other bacteria linked to mold exposure, according to medical records obtained by Bridge.

The Department of Corrections has disputed claims of dangerous mold conditions at the prison, saying an independent review found typical results for a large residential facility, though a recent report noted ventilation problems and failing air circulators.

___

This story was originally published by Bridge Michigan and distributed through a partnership with The Associated Press.

Learn more about our News Monitoring here.

---