Julian Pagan
Julian Pagan, 29, died on July 24, 2026, after he was found unresponsive in a holding cell at a Bronx courthouse following a court appearance. Family and advocates describe him as a warm, funny man who wanted to help people and touched everyone he met, and his cousin remembers him as a great kid with a beautiful spirit. The New York City Department of Correction said he was taken to Lincoln Hospital, where he was pronounced dead, and said an autopsy would determine how he died. His Legal Aid attorney said he was alert and engaged in court hours earlier and showed no signs of a medical emergency, and the family is demanding a full and prompt accounting. The New York Attorney General's Office of Special Investigation is reviewing the death, and it is listed as a medical death.
Cause of death, as reported: Cause not yet determined (disputed). The New York Attorney General's Office lists the death as medical, while his attorney says he showed no signs of a medical emergency in court and an autopsy is pending.
Reported by: New York State Office of the Attorney General, Office of Special Investigation (outside investigators).
News reports (7)
- New York Attorney General, Office of Special Investigation data tables
- DOC inmate, 29, dies while being held in Bronx courthouse holding cell
- UPDATE Man Held on Rikers Island Dies
- Man dies in custody after arraignment at Bronx Criminal Court; Legal Aid attorney, city officials seek answers
- 29-year-old man dies in DOC custody inside Bronx courthouse holding cell
- Death of NYC man in city custody in Bronx courthouse frustrates reform advocates
- Family Advocates Hold Vigil For Man Who Died In Doc Custody Outside Bronx Hall Of Justice