17-Year-Old Dance Star From America’s Got Talent Found Dead In California

A 17-year-old student and a member of the California high school dance team that auditioned for America’s Got Talent has died. Emily Gold, who took her own life, was a year senior at Los Osos High School in Rancho Cucamonga and the captain of the varsity dance team. The San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department Coroner’s Office puts her date of death as September 14. Authorities confirmed that Gold was found lifeless and the cause of death was confirmed as suicide on September 13, at about 11 pm.

Public Information Officer Rodrigo Jimenez of the California Highway Patrol claimed in a statement provided to PEOPLE that “officers from the California Highway Patrol Rancho Cucamonga area responded to a pedestrian down in the lanes.” Jimenez stated that a 17-year-old girl who had been hit by at least one other automobile was in the carpool lane on westbound 210 when the police arrived. The girl did not survive her injuries, he informed the publication, and she was declared dead on the spot.

In an Instagram memorial following her passing, Gold’s dance team honoured her as a “leader, role model, friend, and sister to her teammates.”

Moreover, her parents announced her death on Instagram, sharing their incomprehensible sorrow with the world. “Dear friends. With sadness beyond measure, we must tell you all that we lost our beautiful Emily on September 13th,” Parents Steven and Brandy Gold said on Sunday.

In August, Gold participated in the America’s Got Talent quarterfinals with the Los Osos High dance team. Judge Simon Cowell compared the team’s performance to the movie High School Musical, calling it “brilliant” and “full of energy,” despite the fact that they did not make it to the finale.

A GoFundMe campaign has been established to assist Emily Gold’s family in the wake of this devastating incident. The $50,000 target has already been exceeded halfway through the fundraising campaign. The funds received will directly aid her family and help pay bills during this difficult time.

According to the National Institute on Mental Health, suicide ranks third among young people between the ages of 15 and 24 and is the second most common cause of death among those between the ages of 10 and 14 in the United States. As per the most current statistics available, the percentage of female high school students who are seriously considering suicide increased from 24% in 2019 to 30% in 2021, according to a report released by the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention last year.