In her response to her shock suicide on Friday, Rosie O’Donnell revealed that her ex-wife Michelle Rounds had remarried and had another child since they parted ways.
It was the first public glimpse of her new life after her split from the comedian in 2014.
Now, it can be revealed that Rounds, 46, married Krista Monteleone in December, 2016, and that the pair were living quietly with their new daughter in Windermere, Florida, when she died.
On September 11, police found Rounds inside her home shortly after 7am. It is not clear how she died or who called for help.
She attempted suicide previously after her acrimonious split from O’Donnell and was found locked inside a hotel room after taking a cocktail of ‘wine and pills’.
Michelle Rounds (L) married Krista Monteleone, 47, (R) in December last year. Rounds, who is comedian Rosie O’Donnell’s ex, was found dead in her Florida home after an apparent suicide on September 11
In the wake of her death, trolls attempted to blame her famous ex for her death and accused her of keeping their four-year-old daughter Dakota away.
O’Donnell batted their criticism away, pointing out ‘she gave up her custodial rights’ in their 2015 court battle.
Despite losing custody to Dakota, Michelle has spent time with her since at O’Donnell’s permission.
The comedian called for increased mental health awareness on Friday after saying in a statement that she was ‘saddened’ by the news of Michelle’s death.
The woman’s family will hold a private funeral service in her home state of New York in the coming weeks.
In her obituary, they described Michelle as ‘an industrious woman who had the drive and motivation to better herself and others.’
‘She was a very loving, giving and caring individual who would help anyone in their time of need.
‘Michelle will be remembered for her beautiful smile and beautiful long flowing red hair; her signature some would say.
‘The love she had for her family and friends was unconditional. Not to be fooled by her appearance; Michelle was a high-class “tom boy” who was a sharp shooter, enjoyed boxing, golfing and the great outdoors,’ it continued.
Rounds’ new life with Monteleone had never been reported of before O’Donnell revealed it on Friday
As she reeled from her ex’s death, O’Donnell faced vile claims from Twitter trolls who accused her of causing her death by not allowing her to see their shared daughter who she has custody of
Happy days: Rounds was the adoptive mother of O’Donnell’s youngest daughter Dakota, 4, but lost custody of the girl in 2015 (Rounds and O’Donnell above with Dakota in January 2014)
Contrary to the claims of trolls who harassed O’Donnell on Friday, Rounds was allowed to see Dakota before her death and had spent time with her over the past year (shown above)
O’Donnell advocated for increased mental health awareness on Friday in the wake of Rounds’ death
The family asked for memorial donations to be made in her name to The Desmoid Tumor Research Foundation in New York.
She battled desmoid tumors before she and O’Donnell adopted their daughter Dakota in 2013.
TMZ announced the woman’s suicide on Friday afternoon.
She and O’Donnell began dating in 2011 and were married in June of the following year before splitting in 2014 and divorcing two years later.
It was just a few months after their private ceremony back in 2012 that the couple adopted their daughter Dakota, who is now 4 and lives with O’Donnell.
Rounds previously attempted suicide in September of 2015, with a friend having security at the hotel her ex was staying at kick down the door to prevent her from taking her own life.
‘I am saddened to hear about this terrible tragedy. Mental illness is a very serious issue affecting many families. My thoughts and prayers go out to Michelle’s family, her wife Krista and their child,’ said O’Donnell in a statement.
Tragedy: Michelle Rounds was found dead inside her home after committing suicide on Monday at the age of 46 (Rounds and O’Donnell above in 2014)
Tribute: O’Donnell also posted a drawing done by the couple’s daughter Dakota on Friday in which the girl wrote about how much she loved her mother
O’Donnell also posted a drawing done by the couple’s daughter Dakota on Friday in which the girl wrote about how much she loved her mother.
It is unclear if that was a reference to O’Donnell or Rounds.
A source revealed to DailyMail.com that Rounds’ 2015 suicide attempt occurred shortly after she lost custody of the couple’s daughter Dakota.
The incident also came just one week after DailyMail.com released exclusive photos of O’Donnell and her then-girlfriend Tatum O’Neal enjoying a romantic getaway at the television host’s West Palm Beach mansion.
The photos showed the lovebirds laying by the pool and enjoying some time on the water in O’Donnell’s boat while relaxing at the newly purchased $4.975million mansion.
O’Donnell and O’Neal were both in need of downtime as they recovered from health scares at that time, with O’Donnell having a minor heart procedure in New York at the beginning of that month and Tatum going under the knife for a second operation on her knee in Los Angeles.
A source revealed to DailyMail.com that Rounds’ 2015 suicide attempt occurred shortly after she lost custody of the couple’s daughter Dakota
‘Now I’m clean and aware and alive and interested in the world, saying: “Dating women is exciting to me, and this is turning me on,” Tatum told Harper’s Bazaar at the time.
‘I dated in the heterosexual world up until about four years ago, when I started thinking about dating women — just thinking about it.’
The pair’s not-so-secret relationship proved to be too much for O’Donnell’s estranged wife however, according to sources.
It was around that time when Rounds locked herself in her hotel room and ‘took some pills and drank wine’ according to an insider with knowledge of the situation.
O’Donnell did her best to help Rounds after the incident according to another source, and even let her see their child despite being granted full custody.
‘She’s bending over backwards and won’t try to prevent Rounds from seeing Dakota,’ said the source.
The source also said that Rounds’ behavior had been erratic around that time, adding that she wanted O’Donnell back and was jealous of her new relationship with O’Neal.
‘Basically, Michelle is deeply in love with Rosie and wants her back. She hopes it can still happen,’ said the source.
‘It hasn’t been an easy time for Michelle with Rosie stepping out with her new girlfriend and losing custody of Dakota to her.’
Caffinated in love: The pair’s whirlwind romance started in the summer of 2011, when Rosie approached the corporate headhunter in a Starbucks because she thought Rounds’ puppy was cute
The pair’s whirlwind romance started in the summer of 2011, when Rosie approached the corporate headhunter in a Starbucks because she thought Rounds’ puppy was cute.
Rounds and O’Donnell were engaged by December of that year and married in June 2012 in a private ceremony after Rounds tried to get pregnant and Rosie suffered a heart attack.
In January 2013 they announced they had adopted a baby girl following Rounds’ battle with desmoid tumors.
Who would keep custody of Dakota was the central issue during their divorce proceedings.
Rounds had requested sole custody initially, claiming she was a more attentive parent.
Tough time: Rounds previously attempted to commit suicide in 2015 with pills and wine, but was saved when a friend had security kick down the door to her hotel room (l to r: Blake, Vivienne, O’Donnell, Rounds, Chelsea and a friend at a Broadway show in 2014)
She also argued that O’Donnell should be subject to drug tests because of her excessive drinking and marijuana usage.
Rounds maintained through it all that she was not looking to profit by dragging out the proceedings, claiming that she had plenty of money thanks to her own career success.
O’Donnell also has four older children: sons Blake and Parker and daughters Chelsea and Vivienne.
Chelsea, whose other adopted mother is O’Donnell’s former wife Kelli Carpenter, ran away from home at 17 to move in with an heroin addict and his family.
She was returned home by police after O’Donnell revealed that the girl had left home, but once she turned 18 she decided to move out again and go live with her birth mother.
Chelsea, 19, is now married and living in Long Island with her husband.
Vivienne is Carpenter’s biological child who was conceived with a donor during her marriage to O’Donnell.
To speak to a skilled, trained counselor, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline on 1 800 273 8255