{{Short description|2022 homicide in New York City, U.S.}} {{Use mdy dates|date=February 2022}} {{About|the woman who died in New York|the actress|Michelle Goh}} {{Infobox event | title = Killing of Michelle Go | image = Michelle Alyssa Go.png | caption = Undated photo of Go | location = New York City, New York, U.S. | date = {{start date and age|2022|01|15}} | type = Homicide by pushing | accused = Martial Simon (deemed unfit to stand trial) | charges = Second-degree murder | verdict = | motive = Psychosis<ref>{{cite web |last1=Kaufman |first1=Maya |title=Fatal Neglect: Homeless New Yorkers with serious mental illness keep falling through the cracks despite billions in spending |url=https://www.crainsnewyork.com/health-care/homeless-new-yorkers-serious-mental-illness-keep-falling-through-cracks-despite |website=crainsnewyork |access-date=8 May 2023 |archive-date=May 9, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230509040549/https://www.crainsnewyork.com/health-care/homeless-new-yorkers-serious-mental-illness-keep-falling-through-cracks-despite |url-status=live }}</ref> | target = Michelle Alyssa Go, aged 40 | convictions = }}{{Infobox Chinese | c = 高慧民<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-01-16 |title=我的女儿高慧民被推下纽约地铁，她的生命应该被记住 |url=https://cn.nytimes.com/opinion/20230116/michelle-go-death-subway-father/ |access-date=2024-01-28 |website=纽约时报中文网 |language=zh-cmn-hans |archive-date=January 28, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240128162855/https://cn.nytimes.com/opinion/20230116/michelle-go-death-subway-father/ |url-status=live }}</ref> | p = Gāo Huìmín | j = Gōu Waimàhn | title = Michelle Go }} '''Michelle Alyssa Go''' (December 29, 1981 – January 15, 2022) was a 40-year-old Chinese-American woman who was pushed into the path of an oncoming New York City Subway train at the Times Square–42nd Street station, resulting in her death. The suspect, Martial Simon, was subsequently arrested and charged with second-degree murder.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Funk|first=Luke|date=January 19, 2022|title=Michelle Go Case: Homeless man charged in Times Square subway killing|url=https://www.fox5ny.com/news/michelle-go-homeless-man-charged-in-times-square-subway-killing|access-date=January 22, 2022|website=FOX 5 NY|language=en-US|archive-date=January 22, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220122143935/https://www.fox5ny.com/news/michelle-go-homeless-man-charged-in-times-square-subway-killing|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Sanchez 2022">{{cite news |last1=Sanchez |first1=Ray |last2=Moshtaghian |first2=Artemis |date=January 19, 2022 |title=Times Square subway victim Michelle Alyssa Go remembered as a 'compassionate soul' |work=CNN |url=https://www.cnn.com/2022/01/19/us/michelle-alyssa-go-life-family/index.html |url-status=live |access-date=January 19, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220119222827/https://www.cnn.com/2022/01/19/us/michelle-alyssa-go-life-family/index.html |archive-date=January 19, 2022}}</ref>
== Biography == Michelle Go was born to Justin and Marjorie Go on December 29, 1981, in Berkeley, California.<ref name="Sanchez 2022" /> She was their first child. Their second daughter Marissa died in infancy.<ref name="Go 2023">{{Cite news |last1=Go |first1=Justin |last2=Wong |first2=Harry |date=2023-01-15 |title=Opinion {{!}} I Am Michelle Go's Father. I Am Marking Her Death Where She Lived. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/01/15/opinion/michelle-go-death-subway-father.html |access-date=2024-01-28 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=January 28, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240128162853/https://www.nytimes.com/2023/01/15/opinion/michelle-go-death-subway-father.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Go grew up in Fremont, California, with her parents and her brother Jefferey.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ardrey |first=Taylor |date=January 19, 2022 |title=The family of the 40-year-old woman who was pushed in front of NYC subway train says they're 'in a state of shock' |url=https://www.insider.com/family-of-michelle-alyssa-go-speaks-out-after-deadly-attack-2022-1 |access-date=January 22, 2022 |website=Insider |language=en-US |archive-date=May 24, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240524132849/https://www.businessinsider.com/family-of-michelle-alyssa-go-speaks-out-after-deadly-attack-2022-1 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Lin |first=Summer |date=January 17, 2022 |title=Woman killed after being pushed onto NYC subway tracks grew up in Fremont |url=https://www.mercurynews.com/2022/01/17/woman-killed-after-being-pushed-onto-nyc-subway-tracks-grew-up-in-fremont |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220122144451/https://www.mercurynews.com/2022/01/17/woman-killed-after-being-pushed-onto-nyc-subway-tracks-grew-up-in-fremont/ |archive-date=January 22, 2022 |access-date=January 22, 2022 |website=The Mercury News |language=en-US}}</ref> Circa 1994, she attended American High School in Fremont, where she was a member of the Honor Society as well as a cheerleader. She graduated in 1998. She studied economics at University of California, Los Angeles, graduating with a degree in economics in 2002. She first worked at Ferguson Plumbing Supply in Pasadena, California, as a customer service and sales representative.<ref name="Sanchez 2022" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Go |first=Justin |date=2023-01-16 |title=我的女儿高慧民被推下纽约地铁，她的生命应该被记住 |url=https://cn.nytimes.com/opinion/20230116/michelle-go-death-subway-father/ |access-date=2024-01-28 |website=纽约时报中文网 |language=zh-cmn-hans |archive-date=May 24, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240524132711/https://cn.nytimes.com/opinion/20230116/michelle-go-death-subway-father/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
In 2010, she obtained a Master of Business Administration from the New York University Stern School of Business. She worked at Barclays Capital, before joining financial firm Deloitte, where she worked in mergers and acquisitions.<ref name="Sanchez 2022" />
Go was known for her volunteer work. She had worked with the New York Junior League (NYJL) for over a decade, helping many low-income New Yorkers. The NYJL released a statement after her death.<ref>{{Cite news|last1=Sanchez|first1=Ray|first2=Artemis|last2=Moshtaghian|title=Times Square subway victim Michelle Alyssa Go remembered as a 'compassionate soul'|url=https://www.cnn.com/2022/01/19/us/michelle-alyssa-go-life-family/index.html|access-date=January 22, 2022|work=CNN|archive-date=January 21, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220121134858/https://www.cnn.com/2022/01/19/us/michelle-alyssa-go-life-family/index.html|url-status=live}}</ref>
== Death == On January 15, 2022, Go left her apartment on the Upper West Side of New York City and was waiting for an R train at Times Square-42nd Street station.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Kilander |first=Gustaf |date=January 18, 2022 |title=Family of NYC subway victim shoved to death in front of a train speak out |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/crime/michelle-alyssa-go-nyc-subway-b1995569.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220122143935/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/crime/michelle-alyssa-go-nyc-subway-b1995569.html |archive-date=January 22, 2022 |access-date=January 22, 2022 |website=The Independent |language=en}}</ref> According to police, at about 9:30 a.m. Go was pushed from behind onto the tracks into the path of the oncoming R train. The perpetrator was identified as 61-year-old Martial Simon. Go was pronounced dead at the scene.<ref name="Tully 2022">{{cite news |last1=Tully |first1=Tracey |last2=Southall |first2=Ashley |date=January 19, 2022 |title=Woman Pushed Onto Subway Tracks 'Never Saw' Her Attacker |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/16/nyregion/michelle-go-man-pushes-woman-subway.html |url-status=live |url-access=limited |access-date=January 19, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220119024537/https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/16/nyregion/michelle-go-man-pushes-woman-subway.html |archive-date=January 19, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Lonas |first1=Lexi |title=Judge orders psychiatric evaluation for suspect in fatal New York subway attack |url=https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/590423-judge-orders-psychiatric-evaluation-for-suspect-in-fatal-new-york-subway/ |access-date=4 August 2022 |work=The Hill |date=January 19, 2022}}</ref> Simon fled the scene but later surrendered and admitted guilt.<ref name="nbcnewyork">{{Cite web |last=Novini |first=Rana |date=January 19, 2022 |title=DA: Man in Woman's Deadly Times Square Subway Shove Used Both Hands to Kill Her |url=https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/michelle-go-times-square-subway-shove-death-train-martial-simon/3503067/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220122143936/https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/michelle-go-times-square-subway-shove-death-train-martial-simon/3503067/ |archive-date=January 22, 2022 |access-date=January 22, 2022 |website=NBC New York |language=en-US}}</ref>
===Legal proceedings=== Simon, a former taxi driver originally from Haiti,<ref name="Newman 2022">{{Cite news |last1=Newman |first1=Andy |last2=Schweber |first2=Nate |last3=Marcius |first3=Chelsia Rose |date=2022-02-05 |title=Decades Adrift in a Broken System, Then Charged in a Death on the Tracks |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/05/nyregion/martial-simon-michelle-go.html |access-date=2023-06-24 |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 24, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230624211513/https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/05/nyregion/martial-simon-michelle-go.html |url-status=live }}</ref> had been previously convicted of attempted robbery in 1999 and 2019 and had a warrant out for violating his parole.<ref name="nbcnewyork" /> Shortly before the incident, he had allegedly been harassing other commuters. Another woman later told investigators that she had also been approached by Simon and that she felt threatened by him, so she walked away from him. Simon turned himself in to police shortly after the incident, and has been charged with second-degree murder.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Woodward |first=Alex |date=January 16, 2022 |title=Suspect and victim in deadly Times Square subway attack identified |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/crime/new-york-subway-simon-martial-b1994203.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220122144516/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/crime/new-york-subway-simon-martial-b1994203.html |archive-date=January 22, 2022 |access-date=January 22, 2022 |website=The Independent |language=en}}</ref>
According to the police, Simon has a history of mental illness, having been diagnosed with schizophrenia in 2002.<ref name="Newman 2022" /> Attorney H. Mitchell Schuman of New York County Defender Services said that, instead of understanding the complex issue of a city “[w]ith so many unhoused people with unaddressed mental illness walking the streets of our city, it would be a shame if Mr. Simon was sacrificed at the altar of vengeful public opinion instead of seeking a deeper understanding of these complex issues now facing our society."<ref name="nbcnewyork" /> On April 19, 2022, Simon was deemed unfit to stand trial and indefinitely committed to a locked psychiatric facility.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Newman |first=Andy |date=April 19, 2022 |title=Man Charged in Fatal Subway Push Deemed Unfit for Trial |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/04/19/nyregion/martial-simon-michelle-go-trial.html |url-access=limited |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220602055130/https://www.nytimes.com/2022/04/19/nyregion/martial-simon-michelle-go-trial.html |archive-date=June 2, 2022 |access-date=June 13, 2022 |website=The New York Times |language=en}}</ref> On April 30, 2024, Simon was deemed mentally fit to stand trial.<ref>{{cite web | last=Schnitzer | first=Kyle | title=Homeless man who fatally shoved Michelle Go in NYC subway explodes in court as DA claims he’s now mentally fit for trial | website=New York Post | date=April 30, 2024 | url=https://nypost.com/2024/04/30/us-news/homeless-man-who-fatally-shoved-michelle-ho-in-nyc-subway-now-explodes-in-court-as-da-claims-hes-now-mentally-fit-for-trial/ | access-date=December 13, 2024}}</ref>
==Reaction and concern== Go's death received attention due to its unprovoked malice. Vigils, organized in the San Francisco Bay Area and New York City, were attended by hundreds of mourners. The case inflamed concerns over the homelessness and mental illness crises and elevated fears of soaring rates of violent hate crime, with residents calling for better security and social policies.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Branigin |first=Anne |date=January 19, 2022 |title=For many, Michelle Go's NYC subway death highlights failures in public safety for women |language=en-US |newspaper=The Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/2022/01/19/michelle-go-public-safety-women/ |url-status=live |access-date=January 22, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220316165439/https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/2022/01/19/michelle-go-public-safety-women/ |archive-date=March 16, 2022 |issn=0190-8286}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Price |first=Michelle L. |date=2022-01-19 |title=NYC mayor says even he doesn't feel safe on subway system |url=https://apnews.com/article/business-kathy-hochul-new-york-new-york-city-crime-8480f6556a8ee55b5694ebe70b7d19db |access-date=2024-06-15 |website=AP News |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Lin |first=Summer |date=January 19, 2022 |title=Mourners attend vigils in S.F., NYC for Michelle Go, Bay Area native and subway attack victim |url=https://www.mercurynews.com/2022/01/19/mourners-attend-vigils-in-s-f-nyc-for-michelle-go-bay-area-native-and-subway-attack-victim |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220122144510/https://www.mercurynews.com/2022/01/19/mourners-attend-vigils-in-s-f-nyc-for-michelle-go-bay-area-native-and-subway-attack-victim/ |archive-date=January 22, 2022 |access-date=January 22, 2022 |website=The Mercury News |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name="Tully 2022" /> Since the killing occurred during the rise of hate crimes against East Asians in wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, Go's parents and the press speculated about whether she was targeted due to her race, though investigators did not consider the act a hate crime. Journalists highlighted the killing of Go as an example of the lack of safety of women, particularly those belonging to minorities, experienced in the city, typically alongside the murder of Christina Yuna Lee that occurred the same month, as both victims were women of East Asian descent killed by homeless men.<ref name="Go 2023" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Kaur |first=Harmeet |date=2022-03-15 |title=Attacks on Asian American women are igniting a conversation about public safety |url=https://www.cnn.com/2022/03/15/us/asian-american-women-attacks-public-safety-cec/index.html |access-date= |website=CNN |language=en |archive-date=January 28, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240128162853/https://www.cnn.com/2022/03/15/us/asian-american-women-attacks-public-safety-cec/index.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Venkatraman |first=Sakshi |date=2022-02-16 |title='Nowhere is safe': Asian women reflect on brutal New York City killings |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/nowhere-safe-asian-women-reflect-brutal-new-york-city-killings-rcna16173 |access-date= |website=NBC News |language=en |archive-date=January 28, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240128162853/https://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/nowhere-safe-asian-women-reflect-brutal-new-york-city-killings-rcna16173 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=February 16, 2022 |title=Statement on Christina Yuna Lee and Michelle Alyssa Go |url=https://www.apamsa.org/christina-yuna-lee-and-michelle-alyssa-go/ |access-date= |website=Asian Pacific American Medical Student Association |language=en-US |archive-date=January 28, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240128162854/https://www.apamsa.org/christina-yuna-lee-and-michelle-alyssa-go/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
Following Go's death, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) announced in February 2022 that it would install platform screen doors at three stations as part of a pilot program. The stations included the {{NYCS trains|Flushing|apos=y}} platform at Times Square, as well as the {{NYCS Archer upper}} platform at {{stn|Sutphin Boulevard–Archer Avenue–JFK Airport}} and at {{stn|Third Avenue||BMT Canarsie Line}}.<ref name="nyt-2022-02-23">{{Cite news |last=Gold |first=Michael |date=2022-02-23 |title=Subway Will Test Platform Doors at 3 Stations |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/23/nyregion/nyc-subway-barriers.html |url-status=live |url-access=limited |access-date=2022-02-23 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220223165102/https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/23/nyregion/nyc-subway-barriers.html |archive-date=February 23, 2022 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref name="Brosnan 2022">{{cite web | last=Brosnan | first=Erica | title=MTA: Platform barrier pilot program to launch in three stations | website=Spectrum News NY1 | New York City | date=2022-02-23 | url=https://www.ny1.com/nyc/all-boroughs/news/2022/02/23/mta-to-launch-platform-barrier-pilot-program-at-3-stations | access-date=2022-02-23 | archive-date=February 23, 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220223182724/https://www.ny1.com/nyc/all-boroughs/news/2022/02/23/mta-to-launch-platform-barrier-pilot-program-at-3-stations | url-status=live}}</ref> Even before Go's death, there had been calls to install platform screen doors at several stations, but the MTA had not done so. The pilot program at Times Square does not include the platform where Go was killed.<ref name=nyt-2022-02-23/>
In May 2024, four U.S. representatives introduced the Michelle Go Act, which would allow Medicaid funds to be used to pay for stays at a wider range of psychiatric facilities.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Newman|first=Andy|date=2024-05-23|title=Subway Killing Spurs Bill to Expand Medicaid Funds for Psychiatric Beds|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/23/nyregion/medicaid-psychiatric-beds-michelle-go.html|access-date=2024-05-24|work=The New York Times|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=May 23, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240523193847/https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/23/nyregion/medicaid-psychiatric-beds-michelle-go.html|url-status=live}}</ref>
== See also == * 2021 Atlanta spa shootings * 2022 New York City Subway attack — A mass shooting that occurred three months later * Interminority racism in the United States * Kendra Webdale * Killing of Vicha Ratanapakdee — Thai-American man pushed to his death in San Francisco in 2021 * Killing of Yao Pan Ma — Chinese-American man kicked to death in East Harlem in 2021
== References == {{Reflist}}
{{Anti-Chinese sentiment}} {{Stop Asian Hate}} {{authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Go, Michelle}} Category:2022 controversies in the United States Category:2020s in Manhattan Category:African-American–Asian-American relations Category:Asian-American issues Category:Asian-American-related controversies Category:Deaths by person in New York City Category:January 2022 crimes in the United States Category:January 2022 in the United States Category:Violence in New York City Category:Racially motivated violence against Chinese Americans in New York (state) Category:Violence against women in New York (state) Category:Crimes in Manhattan Category:New York City Subway crimes Category:American High School (California) alumni Category:2022 murders in the United States