Celebs Accused Of Murder & Stars Who Were Convicted Of Killing: Photos

By:

Elissa Anderson

September 28, 2023 10:27PM EDT

Andrew H. Walker/Shutterstock

It’s surprising how many famous people have been involved in suspicious deaths. See photos of stars who were accused of killing, and the few who were found guilty of murder.

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Stars Accused Or Convicted Of Murder: Photos

Stars Accused Or Convicted Of Murder: Photos — We’ve never claimed that celebrities are angels, but it’s still wild to discover how many stars have been wrapped up in strange deaths, and even murders. Some famous people were involved in freak accidents that lead to an untimely end, while others were part of less-savory situations but were eventually acquitted. A select few celebs are downright evil, though, and have actually been convicted as stone-cold killers.

Snoop Dogg was famously charged with the murder of a rival gang member in 1993, along with his bodyguard. His bodyguard was acquitted on the basis of self-defense, but Snoop wasn’t acquitted of the charges until 1996. He let the experience inspire one of his early hits, 1993’s ‘Murder Was The Case’.

Want to learn more about stars who were accused of – or even guilty – of murders? Dive into our list for all the details.

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Alec Baldwin

Alec Baldwin — Alec Baldwin is far from a murderer, but there’s no denying he fired the shot that killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the set of the film ‘Rust’ in Oct. 2021. The actor discharged a prop gun which he was mistakenly told had no live rounds while on location in New Mexico. He is currently the focus of a wrongful death suit.

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Sid Vicious

Sid Vicious — Did he do it? One of rock and roll’s most enduring mysteries is whether or not Sid Vicious killed girlfriend Nancy Spungen in 1979. After she was found stabbed to death in a New York City hotel, the Sex Pistols bassist was arrested. Sid died from an overdose just 7 weeks later, leaving the murder unsolved to this day.

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O.J. Simpson

O.J. Simpson — O.J. Simpson isn’t technically a killer. While a court found him not guilty of wife Nicole Brown Simpson and friend Ron Goldman’s 1994 deaths, the former NFL pro was found responsible in civil court years later. OJ even tried to cash in on the controversy with his 2007 memoir ‘If I Did It: Confessions of the Killer’.

People think there was some comeuppance when OJ was convicted of armed robbery and kidnapping in 2008. He served 9 years.

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Robert Blake

Robert Blake — Robert Blake was charged with the murder of his wife Bonnie Lee Bakley after she was shot in the head while sitting in a passenger side of a parked car outside a Los Angeles restaurant in 2001. Blake said he was in the restaurant when the murder happened. He was aquitted in 2005 but found liable for Bonnie’s wrongful death and ordered to pay $30m.

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Phil Spector

Phil Spector — Phil Spector, seen here before a 1997 court hearing in London, was convicted of killing Lana Clarkson in 2008, after a previous case ended in a hung jury. The music producer was sentenced to 18 years in prison. He died in Jan. of 2021 behind bars.

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Don King

Don King — Don King was found guilty of second-degree murder for beating a former employee to death in 1966, after an argument about a $600 loan became violent. The sentence was reduced to manslaughter after the boxing promoter claimed self-defense. He served less than four years behind bars.

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Oscar Pistorius

Oscar Pistorius — Oscar Pistorius, seen here at the High Court in Pretoria, South Africa, was found responsible for the death of girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp in 2013. Initially, the Olympic parathlete was found guilty of ‘culpable homocide’ after admitting he shot at Reeva because he mistook her for an intruder. An appeals court overturned his original charge in 2016, finding his guilty of homocide and extending his prison sentence to 15 years. He is eligible for parole in 2023.

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Michael Jace

Michael Jace — Michael Jace, here during closing arguments for his murder trial, is behind bars for killing his wife in 2014 .The Shield star shot April Jace in front of their two children and called 911 himself. He was convicted of second-degree murder by a jury in 2016.

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William S. Burroughs

William S. Burroughs — Author William S. Burroughs killed his second wife Joan Vollmer in 1951 in Mexico City, in what he initially claimed was a botched stunt. He was convicted of manslaughter in absentia and received a two-year suspended sentence, which was never served.

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Fatty Arbuckle

Fatty Arbuckle — Roscoe ‘Fatty’ Arbuckle’s was one of Hollywood’s biggest stars when he was arrested for the death of actress Virginia Rappe in 1933. Virginia fell ill and died after one of Fatty’s parties and while he was initially blamed for her death, he was acquitted of manslaughter and sexual assault on the third trial. Sadly, his career couldn’t recover from the scandal and he died of a heart attack at age 46.

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Ray Lewis

Ray Lewis — NFL pro Ray Lewis was arrested after fleeing the scene from a 2000 group brawl that resulted in two stabbing deaths. He was charged with murder, but ended up taking a plea deal and testified against his friends, who were both eventually acquitted.

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Lillo Brancato Jr.

Lillo Brancato Jr. — Former Sopranos star Lillo Brancato Jr.’s life was a little bit too close to the art after his 2005 arrest. He faced second-degree murder charges after the shooting of an off-duty police officer during a burglary. The murder charge didn’t stick but he was sentenced to 10 years for attempted burglary. He was released on parole in 2013.

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Rubin ‘Hurricane’ Carter

Rubin ‘Hurricane’ Carter — Rubin ‘Hurricane’ Carter was a middleweight boxer who spent 19 years in prison wrongly accused of murder. He was released in 1985 after a judge determined the prosecution was acting with racist and biased motives. Carter fought for the rights of the wrongly accused until his death in 2014.

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Cassidy

Cassidy — Cassidy faced a slew of charges after he and two friends shot at three unarmed men, killing one, following a 2005 argument. He was convicted of involuntary manslaughter and served 8 months.

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Gucci Mane

Gucci Mane — Gucci Mane was arrested and charged with murder in 2005 after shooting at a group of men who entered his friend’s apartment. One man died, but prosecutors had to drop the murder charge in 2006 due to insufficient evidence.

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Duane ‘Dog the Bounty Hunter’ Chapman

Duane ‘Dog the Bounty Hunter’ Chapman — Duane ‘Dog the Bounty Hunter’ Chapman’s first contact with the justice system was on the other side of the laws. He was charged with murder after a friend’s fatal altercation with a drug dealer in the 70s. He was convicted of first-degree murder but only served 18 months in a Texas prison.

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Marion ‘Suge’ Knight

Marion ‘Suge’ Knight — Death Row Records mogul Suge Knight, seen here in 2018, was accused of murder in 2015 after a fatal hit-and-run near the set of the N.W.A. biopic Straight Outta Compton. He plead no contest to manslaughter but was sentenced to 28 years in jail because his prior convictions triggered California’s ‘three-strikes’ law. He is eligible for parole in October 2034.

While nothing is confirmed, Suge is also widely accused of orchestrating Christopher ‘Notorious BIG’ Wallace’s 1997 murder in New York. Biggie’s death is believed to have been in retaliation for rival rapper Tupac Shakur’s 1996 murder in Las Vegas.

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