Dead body found in Irving Garage
Emily Steinberger | Daily Orange File Photo
A dead body was found in Syracuse University's Irving Garage on Monday. The person was not affiliated with SU.
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UPDATE: This story was updated at 10:09 p.m. on February 18, 2025.
Content warning: This story contains mention of suicide.
A dead body was found in Syracuse University’s Irving Ave. Garage Monday, according to a campus-wide afternoon email.
The deceased individual was not affiliated with SU, according to the email. SU’s Department of Public Safety responded to multiple reports of the dead body, along with the Syracuse Police Department and the Veterans Affairs Police. Irving Garage is located down the street from the Syracuse VA Medical Center.
The body was identified as a Syracuse VA Medical Center patient, syracuse.com reported Friday. The person is believed to have hung themself by jumping from the garage, according to VA officials.
Witnesses said the person was wrapped in a transgender pride flag. The person had been discharged from the VA’s inpatient psychiatry unit on Jan. 21, VA officials stated.
The body was first seen at the garage around 11:15 a.m. Monday, when several members of the SU community reported it, according to the university’s Monday email.
On Feb. 17, a social media activist identified the person as Elisa Rae Shupe, a veteran of the U.S. Army who was non-binary. Shupe gained national recognition in 2016 for winning a landmark court case that acknowledged gender-neutral designation on legal documents.
Kevin Ortega-Rojas, the social media creator, said in a Feb. 17 Instagram post that Shupe emailed a suicide note to various news outlets in hopes that they would tell her story. Ortega-Rojas wrote that Shupe’s death has received little to no coverage from larger media outlets. In its article reporting the death, Military.com did not name Shupe.
MFT Trans Team, a transgender community support group at SU, announced on Instagram that it will host a vigil in honor of Shupe on Feb. 23 from 3:00–5:00 p.m. at the CNY Philanthropy Center.
For support, students may access the Barnes Center at The Arch at (315) 443-8000, Student Outreach and Support at (315) 443-4357 or Hendricks Chapel at (315) 443-2901.
Published on January 27, 2025 at 2:52 pm
Contact Stephanie: spwright@syr.edu
