Overview

• Police said relatives found the 26-year-old at her Jamaica apartment on Tuesday, Sept. 23, and the case is being treated as a suspected suicide pending an autopsy.
• Local outlets, citing Caribbean National Weekly, reported she was discovered suspended from curtains, while authorities have not released a final cause of death.
• The Miss Universe Jamaica Organisation confirmed her death and posted a tribute, praising her light, grace and kindness.
• In recent posts and a Sept. 4 YouTube video, Spaulding detailed daily suicidal thoughts, saying her mind urged her to jump, overdose or hang herself.
• Friends and pageant peers shared condolences as regional coverage renewed conversations about stigma and access to culturally competent mental-health care, with some drawing parallels to past high-profile cases.