Jennifer Eckhart, a former associate producer at Fox News who accused former Fox News anchor Ed Henry of rape, has died by suicide in Florida. She was 36.
According to the Martin County Medical Examiner’s Office, Eckhart’s death has been ruled a suicide. Law enforcement sources also confirmed the circumstances of her death to TMZ.
Police reportedly responded to Eckhart’s home in Hope Sound on Saturday morning, where she was found dead. Authorities have not indicated any other circumstances surrounding her death.
Who Was Jennifer Eckhart?
Eckhart worked as an associate producer at Fox News before becoming widely known in 2020, when she filed a lawsuit against former Fox News anchor Ed Henry.
In the lawsuit, Eckhart accused Henry of sexually assaulting her while they were working at the network. She alleged that Henry used his position and influence at Fox News and that she feared speaking out could damage her career.
Henry denied the allegations and maintained that their relationship had been consensual.
Fox News fired Henry in July 2020 after receiving Eckhart’s complaint and conducting an internal investigation.
Jennifer Eckhart’s Legal Battle
Eckhart’s legal battle continued for several years. She reached a settlement with Henry in 2024, shortly before the case was scheduled to go to trial.
She also filed a lawsuit against Fox News, alleging that the network had failed to protect her from Henry and had not taken appropriate action over his alleged behaviour. Those claims were dismissed.
In April 2025, a federal appeals court upheld the dismissal, finding that Fox News had not known about Henry’s alleged conduct before Eckhart came forward.
Eckhart later spoke publicly about her allegations and described the fear she said she experienced while working at Fox News.
“I think it’s safe to say that I was paralyzed by fear when I was working there,” she said.
She also said she believed Henry had the power to damage her career and that she felt unable to speak out at the time.
Eckhart’s death comes more than six years after she first publicly accused Henry. Her death has renewed attention on the allegations and the legal proceedings that followed, although the allegations were denied by Henry and the legal cases resulted in different outcomes.