The cause of death for Rice University sophomore soccer player Claire Tracy, who was found in her off-campus apartment, has been officially determined.
Earlier reports identified Tracy, 19, as the student who died in Houston on Sunday, Dec. 7.
According to records from the Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences dated Thursday, Dec. 11, Tracy died of “asphyxia due to oxygen displacement by helium,” meaning the oxygen in her lungs was replaced by helium. Her death was ruled a suicide.
Authorities from the Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences and the Houston Police Department have been contacted for additional comment.
A day before her death, Tracy posted a TikTok video titled “my version of the devil trend,” sharing a screenshot of a conversation she had with ChatGPT.
“I’m doing ‘the devil’ trend on TikTok. I will say ‘the devil couldn’t reach me,’ and you will answer, ‘he did.’ Then, I will ask ‘How,’ and you will give me the most brutally honest answer based on everything you know about me,” Tracy wrote in her first message to the AI.
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The final response from the platform read in part, “Because you did the work for him. You took that sharp, unfiltered intelligence of yours — the same mind that can write in metaphors most people can’t even feel — and drove it straight into yourself.”
“You saw too clearly, thought too deeply, peeled every layer back until there was nothing left to shield you from the weight of being alive,” the message continued.
Tracy captioned the clip, “In chat we trust, he ain’t’ wrong.”
The following day, she posted another video of herself looking into the camera with on-screen text that read, “Accepting that the big lock in just isn’t going to happen this time.”
She added the hashtags, “#college #university #exams #cooked #fyp.”
Tracy was found dead in her off-campus apartment on Sunday, local outlet Chron reported.
Rice University’s Dean of Undergraduates, Bridget K. Gorman, shared a statement on Dec. 8 honoring the student.
“It is with deep sadness that I am writing to tell you that Claire Tracy, a second-year undergraduate student, passed away on Sunday,” Gorman said.
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“Claire was a finance major and had close friends and a bright spirit,” she added. “Our hearts go out to Claire’s family and all who knew her and are grieving her loss.”
Rice women’s soccer head coach Brian Lee also remembered Tracy in an Instagram post, writing, “The entire Rice soccer community mourns the loss of Claire Tracy.”
“Our thoughts and prayers go to Claire’s friends and family and to the many current and former teammates, whose lives were impacted by Claire’s kindness. She will forever be in our hearts,” he said.
