Everything We Know About Priscilla Slater, Michigan Woman Who Died In Police Custody

Source: Social media photo/Screenshot / Local 4

In the midst of Breonna Taylor‘s investigation, another Black woman has died under suspicious circumstances while in police custody.

The family of Priscilla Slater, a 38-year-old Black woman, is searching for answers after she was found unresponsive in her holding cell by Harper Woods Public Safety staff around 12:35 p.m. on June 10, the Detroit Free Press reports. While medics attempted to revive her, she was pronounced dead at nearby St. John Hospital around 12:45 p.m.

Six employees of the Harper Woods Department of Public Safety have been placed on leave while Michigan State Police (MSP) continue their investigation, according to the Detroit Metro Times. Much similar to Sandra Bland’s case, there are discrepancies whether Slater was checked on every 30 minutes, as the law requires.

12 hours prior to her arrest, Slater and a man named Lewis Nichols, 27, were arrested in connection with an alleged shooting that took place at the Parkcrest Inn. They were approached by police while they were sleeping in a vehicle. According to the Local 4 Defenders, officials claim 19 shots were fired into a room where a mom and her baby slept.

A key witness for the case said he observed Salter being pushed to the ground and dragged by Nichols after the alleged shooting.

“She couldn’t even stand up by herself before the police even came,” he told Local 4. “He knocked her to the ground and she was there, barely could get up. He was trying to drag her, saying, ‘Let’s go. Let’s go.’”

But Slater’s family claims police did not initially tell them why she was arrested.

“I’m mad about it and I want justice for Priscilla, yes I do,” Priscilla’s aunt, Jennifer Rand told WXYZ. The

“It sounds like it’s a cover up like they’re covering something up,” says Rand. The family has retained an attorney on their behalf, who will launch an independent investigation.

“I offer my condolences to Ms. Slater’s family. MSP investigators, members of command and myself notified Ms. Slater’s family of the incident in an effort to provide whatever information that may have been available at the time,” Public Safety Director Vincent Smith said in a statement. “MSP investigators are diligently investigating this incident with the complete cooperation of the Department. The cause of death will not be known until the results of the autopsy and toxicology report are completed.”

The local community has rallied around Slater’s family, demonstrating and applying pressure to local officials for transparency.