16 & Pregnant Alum Autumn Crittendon Dead at 27

Reality TV has lost a bright star. 

16 & Pregnant’s Autumn Oxley Crittendon, who joined the series in its fifth season in 2014 alongside her then-boyfriend Dustin Franklin, died July 20 at her home in Henrico county, Virginia. She was 27. 

“Once on scene, officers and fire personnel located an adult female unresponsive within the residence,” the Henrico County Police Division told E! News in a statement. “Members from Henrico Fire attempted life-saving measures however they were not effective. Autumn Oxley, 27, of Henrico, was pronounced deceased at the scene. Henrico Police are currently classifying this incident as a death investigation. Detectives are working with the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner on this case to determine the exact cause and manner of death.”

Autumn was mom to son Drake, 10—whom she shared with Dustin—as well as two other children. According to multiple outlets, Autumn’s older sister, Misty Crittendon, who also appeared on 16 & Pregnant, had eulogized her sister in a since-deleted Facebook post, referring to her as her “dearest baby sister.”

“You were robbed of your life at such a tender age,” she wrote in her July 21 post. “You left before anyone could tell you goodbye. How much we love you. How amazing you are and how proud we are of you for staying sober through some of the toughest parts of your life, how far you’ve came from where you were, how thankful we are to have had all these years with you, how proud of you we are as a mother, how grateful we are for the 3 tiny parts of your heart that are still walking this earth.”

Misty—who also recently changed her Facebook profile photo to a picture of herself and her late sister—also assured Autumn that she would continue to live out her legacy and look after her children. 

“I promise you I will love life in your honor,” Misty’s message continued. “These babies will always know how much you love them, how amazing you are, how special you are, how much you sacrificed and overcame for them, everything and nothing short of it.”