Miss Universe Jamaica 2025 Sues Pageant Organization Over Onstage Fall
“I know for a fact I did not trip,” former Miss Universe Jamaica Gabrielle Henry said. “I do think it could have been avoided. I do think proper measures could have and should have been put in place.”
by Em Enriquez
Published on Sep 26, 2026
Almost a year since it was held, the Miss Universe 2025 pageant continues to be riddled with controversy.
Aside from its controversial outcome and leadership disputes, the competition also faced scrutiny over the serious injuries suffered by Miss Universe Jamaica 2025 Gabrielle Henry, who fell through an opening in the stage during the preliminary evening gown round. Gabrielle was hospitalized in Bangkok, where she received intensive care for several weeks, before returning to Jamaica to continue her treatment and recovery.
The incident raised questions about the pageant’s safety protocols and insurance policies, particularly given the severity of Gabrielle’s injuries. As she continues to recover, she is now taking legal action to hold the Miss Universe Organization (MUO) accountable for the incident.
The former beauty queen has filed a lawsuit against the organization and two related companies, JKN Legacy Inc. and Legacy Holding Group USA. Filed on September 21, the lawsuit brings five claims against the defendants, including negligence, premises liability, negligent hiring, retention and supervision, and negligent and intentional infliction of emotional distress.
Why Miss Universe Jamaica 2025 Gabrielle Henry Is Suing the Miss Universe Organization
In correspondence with People, Gabrielle recalled the incident, revealing that she barely remembers the fall itself. “I have no recollection of the fall,” she said. “I just know that the bottom of that hole was a concrete base.” Days after regaining consciousness, she learned that she had suffered an intracranial hemorrhage, or brain bleed, as well as facial and back injuries.
“Brain injury, it’s one of the most traumatizing things,” she stated. “I would not wish it on my worst enemy.”
In a first-person account she penned for the same publication, Gabrielle reflected on how the incident changed her life. “I fell into an unguarded hole, sustaining a traumatic brain injury that permanently altered the course of my life. All at once, a beautiful moment became a shattered dream.”
Gabrielle spent the next several months recovering from her injuries, eventually returning to Jamaica to continue her treatment. She described the process as “an out-of-body experience... a sense of disassociation from one’s self,” explaining that she had to gradually regain control over her body.
“I felt stuck in my bed, looking forward each day to the time I would get to spend with my physiotherapists,” she recalled. “There have been nights where I have not been able to sleep because of how severe the pain is.”
Given the extent of her injuries, Gabrielle maintains that she did not simply “trip” and believes that adequate safety precautions could have prevented the incident. “I know for a fact I did not trip,” she said. “I do think it could have been avoided. I do think proper measures could have and should have been put in place.”
Nearly a year later, Gabrielle is now seeking accountability from the Miss Universe Organization through legal action. Represented by her lawyer Joseph L. Ciaccio, she also hopes the lawsuit will help prevent similar incidents from happening to future candidates.
“I’m filing this lawsuit now because accountability matters, and because the platforms we put contestants on need to be completely safe to prevent this from happening to anyone else,” she said.
Just last August, Gabrielle returned to the Miss Universe Jamaica stage to crown her successor. Having been unable to fully experience her reign because of her injuries, she described the occasion as “an opportunity to retrieve a small morsel of what I had lost.”
“I returned, hoping to speak with the contestants and the new winner and give them advice, not only because it was part of my job as the former queen, but because pageantry is a sisterhood. I myself had gone through what they were going through, and I could empathize with the challenges they faced,” she wrote in her first-person account for People.
As a medical doctor herself, Gabrielle also expressed her gratitude to the healthcare professionals who cared for her in both Thailand and Jamaica. “Their care, precision and steady encouragement have sustained me through moments of uncertainty,” she wrote.
As of the time of writing, the Miss Universe Organization has yet to publicly comment on Gabrielle’s lawsuit.
Em is queer and probably daydreaming somewhere. They're Preview's associate entertainment editor who's often spotted in cowboy boots and lemon-tinted sunnies.