10 Celebrities Charged with MURDER

10 Celebrities Who Were Charged With Murder

Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re taking a closer look at 10 celebrities who have been charged with murder.

For this list, we’ll be looking at famous individuals who have before been charged with homicide. Some were found guilty, some were found not guilty, but all have at one stage received the charge sheet for murder.

O.J. Simpson

This former football star and successful actor was at the center of perhaps the most controversial and publicized trial of the 20th century. When Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman were found dead in June 1994, Brown’s ex-husband, O.J. Simpson was accused of being responsible. The accusation was followed by a court case that got a ton of tv coverage. During the trial, the defense team introduced a number of arguments for his innocence. His legal team ultimately prevailed when a verdict of not guilty was reached. But Simpson was later found liable for the deaths in a civil trial and was ordered to pay damages to the tune of $33.5-million.

Scott Hall

WWE star Scott Hall, who you may recognize by his ring name Razor Ramon, was a very successful wrestler who competed professionally for more than thirty years. In 1983, before his career took off, Hall was charged with second-degree murder for the death of a man in Orlando, Florida. Hall had gotten into a fight outside a nightclub and ended up shooting the man with his own gun. Although that could easily have ended his career before it even started, the burgeoning wrestler insisted that he’d acted in self defense. After an investigation was carried out, the charges were dropped. Interviews with Hall would later suggest that the memory of this dark moment stuck with him throughout his life.

Don King

With his crazy hair and flamboyant personality, King is one of the most famous boxing promoters ever. Unfortunately, aside from alleged organized crime connections and various litigation cases against him, he was found responsible for the deaths of at least two people in court. The first was Hillary Brown, whom King shot in a justifiable homicide in 1954 after Brown tried to steal money from one of his gambling dens. Thirteen-years later, Sam Garrett – a former employee of King who owed him money – was beaten to death, and King was found guilty. He spent four-years in prison on a non negligent manslaughter charge, and has since been pardoned for the crime.

Aaron Hernandez

Aaron Hernandez was an NFL star who played tight end for the New England Patriots. But his career came to a halt less than a year after renewing his contract with the team. In 2013, police discovered that Hernandez’s friend Odin Lloyd died from gunshot injuries. Since the deceased man was found close to the tight end’s house, authorities quickly brought him in for questioning. The ensuing trial ended in Hernandez being found guilty and sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. While he was also tried for the killing of two other men, Daniel de Abreu and Safiro Furtado, he was acquitted of their murders. In 2017, Hernandez took his own life in his prison cell.

William S. Burroughs

Before he became a world-renowned writer, William S. Burroughs lived with a woman named Joan Vollmer after he was discharged from the U.S. Army. The two eventually fled to Mexico to evade drug charges brought against the author. Both were at a party one night when Burroughs reportedly took out a gun and insisted he could shoot a glass that was atop Vollmer’s head. But the writer tragically missed and ended up fatally wounding her. Before facing trial, Burroughs fled back to the U.S. In his absence, he was found guilty and handed a two-year suspended sentence.

Robert Blake

Blake was famous for his film and TV roles, notably and perhaps ironically including his portrayal of a real-life killer 1967’s “In Cold Blood.” Blake married Bonnie Lee Bakley in 1999, a woman notorious for scamming older men for their money. Two-years later, she was found dead in a car from a gunshot. Blake was arrested and charged the following year. Although several witnesses claimed he’d tried to hire them to kill her, he was acquitted in the criminal case. But Blake was found liable for his wife’s wrongful death in a civil suit and was ordered to pay $30-million.

Snoop Dogg

In 1993, Snoop Dogg was arrested for his involvement in the murder of Phillip Woldermariam. The two had plenty of bad blood prior to the incident. On one fateful day, Woldermariam allegedly threatened the musician before his bodyguard, McKinley Lee, fired at the attacker. Since Snoop Dogg was reportedly driving the car when Lee fired the fatal shot, he was considered an accomplice to the crime and charged with first-degree murder. The two hired notable celebrity lawyer Johnnie Cochran to help defend him. The trial, which lasted about four months, ended in both Snoop and Lee being acquitted of the murder.

Phil Spector

Ranked as one of Rolling Stone’s Greatest Artists of All Time and acclaimed for his roles as a producer, songwriter, and music pioneer, Spector was a giant in the industry, which is why many were shocked when a woman turned up dead in Spector’s California home in 2003. The woman was actress Lana Clarkson, and although he was quoted as saying that he thought he had killed her, he later claimed that she accidentally took her own life because she had “kissed the gun.” Regardless, the eccentric celebrity was tried twice in relation to Clarkson’s death and was ultimately convicted of second-degree murder in 2009.

Oscar Pistorius

This South African runner first made it to the news as a gold medal-winning Paralympian. He would later make history as the first runner with an amputation to participate in an Olympic track heat. Although Pistorius was initially seen as an inspiration, everything changed in February 2013. On February 14th, he shot and killed his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp at his home in South Africa. He claimed that he thought she was a home invader. Although Pistorius was found not guilty of the murder, he was found guilty of culpable homicide. After sitting in on multiple sentencing hearings and going to prison, it was reported that he’d be eligible for parole in 2023.

Sid Vicious

Famous for his rebellious lifestyle and his musical career with the Sex Pistols, Vicious was also well-known for his relationship with the equally-unruly Nancy Spungen. Their tumultuous love-affair was marked by physical and emotional torment. On October 12th, 1978, Vicious woke to find Spungen dead in the bathroom of their suite in New York’s Chelsea Hotel. Although it’s unknown whether her death was accidental, the unintentional result of a fight, or deliberate murder, Vicious was released on bail. The incident deeply affected the musician and reportedly led to him committing self-destructive acts. He would later pass away less than a year later.