Temple Student Found Dead In Library, 4th Death This Semester

PHILADELPHIA – With less than a month left in the fall semester at Temple University, the school announced the fourth student death of the 2017-2018 academic year on Wednesday Nov. 29.

Fourth-year marketing major Michael Paytas, 24, of Holmes, Delaware County, died after being found unresponsive in the Samuel Paley Library on Monday, Nov. 27. The announcement made Wednesday is tragically similar to other announcements made by the school, as three other Temple students have died this semester alone.

One student was killed in early September, another committed suicide in October, and a third was shot and killed by police in Florida, also in October.

Jenna Nicole Burleigh, 22, of Harleysville, Montgomery County, went missing in the early morning hours of Aug. 31 near a Temple-area bar. Her body was later discovered about 135 miles north of Philadelphia in Wayne County, Pennsylvania on property owned by her alleged killer's grandmother.

Joshua Hupperterz, 29, of Philadelphia, is facing murder, abuse of a corpse, tampering with evidence, and possession of an instrument of crime charges in connection with Burleigh's death, according to court records.

Then, freshman engineering major Richard Dalcourt died after a fall from his dorm room on Oct. 3. Dalcourt, 19, of Plainsboro, New Jersey, died from multiple blunt impact injuries. The Philadelphia Medical Examiner's Office ruled his death a suicide.

Dalcourt's obituary says he was a "quiet, kind and caring person" who went out of his way to help others and loverd of video games, action movies, his cat, loved spending time with his sisters and having his friends over for countless games of pool.

The third student death occurred on Oct. 8 in Miami Beach, Florida.

Cariann Denise Hithon, 22, of Bowie Maryland, was shot and killed by Miami Beach Police after she struck an officer with a vehicle. Hithon, who was pursuing a bachelor's degree in political science at Temple, was caught on video accelerating toward an officer, hitting him with the vehicle.

A second officer on the scene shot several rounds at the vehicle she was driving, striking her in the process. Hithon was taken to a nearby hospital where she later died.

"This has been a painful semester, Owls," the Temple Student Government said in a statement following Hithon's death. "We will continue to push unity and peace through these times because pain in easier to deal with when you have people surrounding and encouraging you."

Following Paytas' recent death, the university is reminding the community that support is available the at the Tuttleman Counseling Services, located at 1700 N. Broad St., Philadelphia.

Watch Now: 4th Student Death At Temple This Semester

Editor's note: A headline on a previous version of this story said the student was found dead in the bathroom. The student was found dead in the library. Patch regrets the error.

Image via Renee Schiavone/Patch Staff