According to reports, former Miss USA winner Cheslie Kryst is thought to have jumped off a Manhattan building, just hours after posting a cryptic message to social media that said, “May this day bring you rest and peace.” The 30-year-old beauty queen also worked as an Extra correspondent and was a lawyer. She was a notable recipient of the Miss USA crown because she made use of the country’s stage to raise awareness about social justice issues when she took home the crown in 2019.
The beauty queen resided on the ninth floor of a luxury building on West 42nd Street in midtown Manhattan. It’s thought that she leaped from a window on the 29th floor of the 60-story structure. Authorities believe she jumped at 7:15 am, and her body was discovered motionless on the sidewalk, which was dusted with snow.
According to sources close to the truth, Kryst was last seen on the 29th floor, where there is a terrace open to all residents in the luxury building. Only hours before she leaped, Kryst posted her message on social media, suggesting that “May this day bring you rest and serenity.”
When police arrived at the scene, they entered Kryst’s apartment and found a letter. In the note, the former Miss USA winner stated that she wanted everything she owned to be given to her mother, who was also a former pageant winner. She did not explain herself in the letter beyond this request, and there was no further evidence to suggest why she was willing or felt compelled to end her life by jumping from the Manhattan high-rise.
“Not only beautiful, but she was smart — she was a lawyer,” a police source said. “She has a life that anyone would be jealous of. … It’s so sad.”
Kryst qualified to compete in the Miss USA pageant as Miss North Carolina after winning the title. When asked to summarize her generation in one word during the competition, Kryst chose “innovative” to characterize today’s youth.
“I’m standing here in Nevada, in the state that has the first female majority legislature in the entire country,” she stated. “Mine is the first generation to have that forward-looking mindset that has inclusivity, diversity, strength, and empowered women. I’m looking forward to continued progress in my generation.”
Kryst’s victory boosted her profile and allowed her to continue using her voice to advocate for social justice causes. In an interview with ABC’s Good Morning America in July 2019, Kryst stressed the importance of including everyone in the discussion.
“It’s not just a black issue or a brown issue or a female issue. It’s everybody’s issue, and we have to start viewing it that way,” she stated.
Unfortunately, Kryst is the latest beauty queen in a long line of those who have committed suicide. In Miss America history, there have been six suicides and two accidental deaths. The most recent was Kira Kazantsev, who won the crown in 2015 but took her life only four years later in 2019.
Kryst was never afraid to voice her opinion and used her platform as Miss USA to speak out about many important issues. Despite her bright future, she sadly took her own life by jumping from a luxury Manhattan high-rise.
