What to Know About Mary Cosby's Late Son, Robert Cosby Jr.
What to Know About Mary Cosby's Late Son, Robert Cosby Jr.
Lynsey Eidell, Samantha StutsmanWed, February 25, 2026 at 8:34 PM UTC
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Robert Cosby Jr.; Mary Cosby.Credit: Mary Cosby/Instagram; Charles Sykes/Bravo via Getty -
Mary Cosby and her husband, Robert Cosby Sr., welcomed their son, Robert Cosby Jr., in 2002
Robert Jr. appeared several times on The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City, where he discussed his substance abuse
He died at age 23 on Feb. 23
The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City star Mary Cosby and her husband, Robert Cosby Sr., are mourning the tragic loss of their only child.
Robert Cosby Jr. died on Feb. 23 at age 23. The Salt Lake City Police Department confirmed the death to PEOPLE, saying authorities responded to a possible overdose after receiving a call regarding a “full arrest/medical emergency” of a 23-year-old male.
“Our beloved son Robert Jr. has been called home to the Lord," Mary and Robert said in a statement obtained by PEOPLE. "Though our hearts ache, we take comfort in God’s promise and in knowing he is finally at peace. We are grateful for your prayers and trust in the Lord to carry us through this time of sorrow.”
Mary and Robert Sr. welcomed their son in 2002 after four years of trying to conceive. Since RHOSLC premiered in 2020, Robert Jr. made several appearances alongside his mom on the show.
He talked about several coming-of-age experiences, including his first girlfriend and, later, his courthouse wedding. Robert Jr. was also candid about his struggles with substance abuse and suicidal ideation.
Here is everything to know about Mary Cosby’s late son, Robert Cosby Jr.
He was an only child
Robert Cosby Jr. and Mary Cosby in September 2023.Credit: Mary Cosby/Instagram
Robert Jr. was the only child born to his parents, Mary and Robert Sr. The couple wed in September 1998 and welcomed their son in the early 2000s. (Robert Sr. was previously married to Mary's grandmother.)
They named him Robert Clinton Cosby Jr. after his father, Mary revealed in a season 1 episode of The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City.
“I have a beautiful son,” she said. “When I had my son, I went into a whole other level of love.”
Mary added, “Robert Sr., he’s in love with his son. He’ll do anything for him. And I’m like the helicopter mom.”
The family often traveled, visiting places like Dubai and Japan for Robert Jr.’s birthdays. “Anywhere that he wanted to go that he found of interest, I took him,” Mary shared.
She also ensured that Robert Jr. grew up with everything that she didn’t have. Notably, they moved from Utah to New York for eight years, Mary revealed at the season 5 reunion, so that Robert Jr. could grow up in “a diverse atmosphere” with “the best education.”
He lived in Salt Lake City with his parents
Mary Cosby and son Robert Jr. on 'The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City'Credit: Bravo
The Cosbys have homes in Florida, New York, Nevada and Indiana, but Robert Jr. lived at their Salt Lake City residence with his parents.
He once had ambitions to become a fashion designer, but, as of 2024, he was still living at home and being supported by his parents, Mary revealed in season 5 of RHOSLC.
However, she took the responsibility for Robert’s unemployment and revealed that she did not want him to move out of their Salt Lake City home.
“I just feel like he’s very sheltered, and I feel like that’s my fault,” Mary said in the episode. “So that’s why I don’t mind him staying home.”
He secretly married in August 2022
Robert Jr. wed his girlfriend, Alexiana Arian Smokoff, in a Utah courthouse in August 2022, according to TMZ. However, he kept the nuptials a secret from his parents for nearly a year.
“Robert Jr. has a girlfriend, but everyone’s telling me it’s his wife,” Mary said in the season 4 premiere of RHOSLC.
She later addressed the rumors head-on when she sat down with Robert Jr. and asked him if there was any truth to the rumors that he was married. The then-20-year-old admitted that he and Alexiana had snuck to the courthouse a year prior and said, “I do" — a revelation that left Mary emotional.
She then explained in a confessional how Robert Jr. and Alexiana were able to conceal their marriage from her for nearly a year, despite all three sharing a home.
“They both live in my house, but I don’t see them much,” she said. “We kind of have our own wings.”
Mary continued, “One day, they were getting dressed, and he was rushing to go do something. And he was dressed up nice and she was dressed up nice. But they were running — like, full-blown running with all their might. But I didn’t know they were running to go get married.”
He revealed his struggles with substance abuse and mental health on The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City
Robert Cosby Jr.; Mary Cosby.Credit: Mary Cosby/Instagram ; Jason Mendez/Getty
Robert Jr. dealt with a years-long drug addiction, using both prescription medications and recreational drugs.
He opened up for the first time about his troubles with substance abuse in a season 5 episode of RHOSLC, which aired in November 2024. In the candid conversation with his mother, the then-21-year-old admitted to using the anxiety medication Xanax since he was 16, after first trying it at a party.
In addition, Robert Jr. revealed he had been abusing other prescription drugs, including the ADHD medication Adderall and the opioid painkiller OxyContin, taking as many as 10 at once. “I couldn't even feel it,” he recalled. “I couldn't feel it at all.”
As his drug addiction worsened, Robert Jr. told Mary that he had tried heroin. But perhaps his most honest admission came when he shared with his mother that he had “wanted to die at the time.”
“I felt like a stain — I just felt like this world wasn't for me,” Robert Jr. shared. “You’re the only reason I didn't kill myself,” he added, referencing his mother.
Mary took the news of Robert Jr.’s struggles with substance abuse and his mental health particularly hard. She placed the blame on herself, telling the cameras she felt like she had “let him down somewhere” and “missed the mark.”
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“If I don't blame myself, whose fault is it? I feel I'm responsible,” Mary said in a later episode.
Robert Jr. completed a month-long stay in rehab, Mary shared in a December 2024 appearance on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen. His wife, Alexiana, also went to rehab.
“He completed it. He did an excellent job. He came out a new person,” Mary said.
He had multiple run-ins with the law
Robert Cosby Jr.Credit: 2025 Salt Lake County
Apart from his struggles with substance abuse, Robert Jr. also faced legal troubles.
In 2022, the reality TV personality was arrested for a DUI after police claimed he was operating a vehicle without a license and disobeyed traffic laws, PEOPLE previously reported. He later took a plea deal, where he pleaded guilty to the DUI in exchange for the other charges being dropped.
Then, in September 2025, Robert Jr. was arrested on multiple charges, including criminal trespassing, assault, failure to stop at the command of law enforcement and three counts of violating a court order, per his booking record viewed by PEOPLE. The arrest stemmed from an incident that took place at his father-in-law’s home outside of Salt Lake City, where his wife was staying at the time.
According to court documents, Robert Jr. allegedly attempted to climb through a dog door to break into his father-in-law’s house. He was also accused of vandalizing his father-in-law’s home, attacking him on his front lawn, and biting a law enforcement officer on the hand after he failed to comply with orders and had to be physically restrained. Robert Jr. reportedly needed to be tasered to be brought under control.
Mary later explained to PEOPLE that the arrest occurred after she and Robert Sr. moved Alexiana out of their house. Robert Jr. and Alexiana snuck out to be together, according to Mary’s account, and, as a result, her parents had him arrested for trespassing. Though it “devastated” her at the time, Mary later shared that she felt Robert Jr.’s arrest was “a blessing in disguise."
"It was for his good," she said in November 2025. "I think he needed that. He's never encountered anything like that. ... I feel like he needed that and that he understands that that's the wrong journey."
Robert Jr. also opened up about the arrest to PEOPLE, sharing that he's "not where I want to be, but I'm certainly not where I used to be."
In November 2025, Robert Jr. was arrested again and accused of violating a pretrial protective order. The same month, he pleaded guilty to eight of the 14 total charges he was facing: One count of felony property damage or destruction greater than or equal to $5,000; two counts of violation of a pretrial protective order (which was obtained by his wife, Alexiana), one count of assault on a peace officer, one count of violation of a jail release court order, two counts of criminal trespass on a dwelling with intent to cause annoyance, injury, or fear (all Class A misdemeanors); and one count of Class B misdemeanor assault. The remaining six misdemeanor charges were dismissed with prejudice.
Robert Jr. was booked into Salt Lake County Jail in November 2025. He was released from jail on Feb. 3, 2026, after serving two months behind bars.
His wife filed for divorce in November 2025
On Nov. 24, 2025 — two weeks after Robert Jr. was arrested for violating a protective order and one day before his pleading guilty in court — his wife, Alexiana, filed for divorce after three years of marriage.
The petition listed several prohibited actions for both parties, including requiring them not to “harass, intimidate or disturb the peace of the other party, by any means, including electronically.”
Robert Jr.’s lawyer, Clayton Simms, provided an exclusive statement to PEOPLE after his client pleaded guilty to several of the charges he was facing in court. In it, he shared that Robert Jr. had a “difficult” time accepting that the relationship was over “based on his religion and background.”
“To him, marriage is sacred and forever,” Simms said. “His parents were his example and they've been married for 27 years. Robert was slow to recognize and accept his marriage was over and continued to connect with his soon-to-be ex-wife. Robert has accepted responsibility for his mistakes and has pleaded guilty to several misdemeanors."
Mary had previously expressed doubt that Robert Jr. and Alexiana’s marriage was even legal.
"I still don't believe she's his wife," Mary told PEOPLE in November 2025. “I think they were out of their mind, and they maybe made up something. They said that the marriage license is in a safe, and the safe is locked, and they have to bust it open because they lost the key.”
Mary referred to him as her “everything”
Mary Cosby at the 2025 Bravocon on November 14, 2025 in Las Vegas, NevadaCredit: Rich Polk/Bravo via Getty
Throughout Robert Jr.’s sobriety journey and the difficulties in his personal life, Mary ensured her son knew he was loved and supported.
When Robert Jr. opened up to his mother about his drug addiction, Mary responded by telling him that he is “the only thing” that ever brought her happiness.
“You have to know I love you more than anything,” she said. “You're my friend, you're my son, you're my gift. God gave you to me. You're the only thing that ever made me happy. Before I had you, I was never happy. You came, and you were so real. It was everything I hoped for in a person.”
In the same conversation, Robert Jr. admitted to Mary that he “felt like a stain,” a moment that she later reflected on at the season 5 reunion.
“You don’t want to hear your child say that when they’re not,” she said. “He’s everything.”
He died in February 2026
Robert Jr. died at age 23 on Feb. 23, 2026 — less than a month after being released from jail.
The Salt Lake City Police Department confirmed the death to PEOPLE. While Robert Jr.’s official cause of death has not yet been determined, authorities initially responded to a report of a possible overdose, which became a death investigation upon their arrival.
If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, please contact the SAMHSA helpline at 1-800-662-HELP.
If you are experiencing domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or go to thehotline.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.
on People
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
