’16 and Pregnant’ Star Autumn Crittendon’s Cause of Death Revealed

The cause of death has been revealed for 16 & Pregnant star Autumn Crittendon. The mom-of-three, who appeared on Season 5 of the MTV reality series, sadly died this summer on Saturday, July 20 at the Henrico County, Virginia home she shared with her children, mother, and stepfather. She was 27-years-old. TMZ reports she died from an accidental overdose.

Per the report, the findings from the Virginia Department of Health reveal her death was a lethal combination of fentanyl and para-fluorofentanyl, the latter of which is an illicit synthetic opioid similar to fentanyl.

Crittendon’s sister, Misty, paid tribute to Autumn in a since-deleted post, per Starcasm, writing: “To my dearest baby sister, my twin, my rock, my babies mother, my go to, my world, the only one who got me and most of my childhood trauma, who endured it all with me, my Arnold. You were robbed of your life at such a tender age, 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.”

At the time of her death, the local police were classifying Autumn’s death as accidental. She was reportedly sick and was complaining of heartburn in the days leading up to her passing. Autumn was also diabetic and experienced kidney issues and blood pressure-related issues. 

Her stepfather found her unresponsive. Paramedics were called, but were unable to revive her.

Crittendon appeared in 16 & Pregnant Season 5 in 2014. The season documented her welcoming her first child, Drake, with her then-boyfriend Dustin Franklin. She went on to welcome two more children, another son and a daughter aged five and 18 months. Of her sister’s three children, Misty promised, “We are gonna make sure these babies are okay. Your memory will not fade over time. It will live on every moment of every day.”