Defense attorney says suspect in I-81 crash that killed state trooper had history of seizures

Tractor-trailer driver Michael Bon was not tired on the morning of the July 1 crash that killed a state trooper on Interstate 81 in Schuylkill County, his defense attorney John Waldron said Monday.

The Allentown-based laywer is focusing on whether Bon suffered from an untreated medical condition that could have caused him to lose control and crash his rig into two other vehicles, killing Trooper Michael Pahira Jr.

"My question to him and his family was, 'Did you ever have seizures in the past? Did you ever suffer a seizure?' His family said yes. And then when I met him in Schuylkill County Prison, he said that he did have seizures in the past when he was in Haiti," Waldron told WVIA News on Monday.

Bon, 33, a Haitian national living in Brockton, Mass., faces homicide by vehicle and other charges in connection with the crash.

Attorney: Immigration status unrelated to crash

Bon had been ordered to leave the U.S.

He also had been granted a "non-domiciled" commercial driver's license (CDL), issued by states to people who are not U.S. citizens or permanent residents before a federal order stopped the practice earlier this year.

Waldron said Bon's immigration status "had nothing to do" causing the accident.

The Department of Homeland Security said last week that Bon "remained in the United States illegally after his humanitarian parole was terminated in June 2025."

But Massachusetts officials confirmed to WVIA News that Bon was legally eligible for a CDL at the time he applied in March 2025, because he had not been ordered to leave the country.

Bon applied for renewal in February 2026 and was approved in accordance with federal law, a spokesperson for the Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles (RMV) said.

The registry relies on the federal SAVE (Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements) database to determine whether someone is eligible to work in the United States. When Bon applied for the CDL in 2025 and 2026, the federal government listed him as eligible, the agency said.

On March 16, the Trump Administration's final rule went into effect, which directs states not to renew or issue new non-domiciled CDLs.

"He told me he was awaiting asylum, an asylum disposition in Massachusetts, and they gave him a work permit while he was awaiting an asylum disposition," Waldron said.

On July 2, ICE lodged an immigration detainer against Bon, the day after police arrested him in connection with the crash.

Waldron said neither he nor Bon had received formal notice of that detainer as of Monday afternoon.

U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Bon 'was not tired,' rested in New York

Bon was en route from New Hampshire to Texas on the morning of the crash, Waldron said.

Pahira, 44, a 20-year veteran of the force, was assigned to PSP's Frackville barracks as a motor carrier inspector. He was struck and killed as he inspected a tractor-trailer on the right shoulder of the interstate in Butler Township about 7 a.m., investigators said.

Investigators said Bon drove a 2019 Freightliner tractor-trailer with Florida license plates that veered off the road and struck the side mirror of Pahira's parked Ford F-350 before striking the rear of the tractor-trailer Pahira was inspecting.

The tractor-trailer “caught fire with the trooper trapped at the front end of the truck,” before stopping, Acting State Police Commissioner George L. Bivens said.

“His injuries were very severe. He never regained consciousness,” Bivens said during a crash-day press conference.

Pahira's pickup's emergency lights were activated, investigators said, and both vehicles were off travel lanes. The stretch where the crash took place is straight with no defects, and there were no adverse weather conditions, a police affidavit states.

Waldron said he asked Bon if he was tired at the time of the crash. Bon told him he was not.

"He stopped in New York, refueled, rested for an hour or two, drank a Red Bull or two — an energy drink — and then continued into Pennsylvania, where the accident took place," Waldron said.

"I'm not aware of any controlled substance, any alcohol or things along those lines," Waldron said when asked if his client was under the influence of any substance.

"And the criminal charges indicate that also, because he's not charged with driving under the influence of alcohol, driving under the influence of a controlled substance or any other substance-they're not in the charges," Waldron said. "So at this point in time, there's no indication of alcohol or a controlled substance involved in this tragedy."

Waldron also said he spoke with the truck's owner, who was unaware of any mechanical issues.

"The truck owner said Michael's credentials were fine, which is why he got hired, and the truck was inspected," he said.

PennDOT via Department of Homeland Security

'He doesn't remember veering off'

Bon said he does not recall what led up to the crash, his attorney said.

"He doesn't remember veering off. He doesn't remember making contact with anything. What he remembers is the fire, the steering wheel broken in front of him on the floor, and then jumping out, and then trying to aid the trooper with the workmen that were working at a worksite nearby," Waldron said.

Investigators in an affidavit said men working at a construction site just off the highway ran to help when they saw smoke and flames and attempted to rescue Pahira.

The affidavit said one witness told them Bon "had a difficult time understanding him at the scene."

Waldron said he had no problem communicating with Bon in person.

"I did not use an interpreter when I spoke to him. It was just he and I together in a room at Schuylkill County Prison attorney conference room. He spoke to me in English," Waldron said. "Was it broken English? Somewhat. He understood me. I understood him. I did not need an interpreter."

History of seizures in Haiti

Bon is the eldest brother — "a hard worker from a hardworking family," Waldron said, and another family member followed his example, becoming a truck driver with a CDL.

They left Haiti because of its instability, Waldron said.

"They have political problems. They have gangs. The citizens are just in terror all the time," he said.

That wasn't the only issue. Bon told Waldron he did not receive any medical treatment for his seizures, only cups of tea.

"He said they treat you with tea. It's not like you go to a hospital and they give you medication, or you see a neurologist or something like that. It's just the nature of a third-world country, which is why he and his family left in the first place," Waldron said.

Bon did not receive any treatment for seizures in the U.S. "because he didn't have any in the U.S.," Waldron said.

"With seizures, you know, they they kind of come out of the blue," he said.

"You never know when they're going to occur, and they occur quickly," Waldron added. "Oftentimes, you bite your tongue, and then you become conscious again in five, 10, minutes. It's a quick event, but you do lose consciousness. And when you're driving, that's a recipe for disaster."

Bon was treated at a hospital for a head injury that required attention following the crash, and suffered scrapes and bruises, but "I don't think they were serious," Waldron said.

"One thing he said to me was this: 'I would rather that I have passed away and died than the trooper,'" Waldron said. "His heart goes out to them because he feels so bad that this occurred and that he caused it."

Bon remains in the Schuylkill County Prison, unable to post $700,000 bail. Court records show a preliminary hearing is set for Aug. 26.