Celebrities Who Received A Life Sentence: What Was Their Crime?

Best known as Steven Hyde on That '70s Show, actor Danny Masterson was convicted in May 2023 of forcibly raping two women at his Hollywood Hills home between 2001 and 2003. In September 2023, a Los Angeles judge sentenced him to two consecutive terms of 15 years to life—30 years to life in state prison.

Once a star tight end for the New England Patriots with a $40 million contract, Aaron Hernandez was arrested in June 2013 after semi-pro football player Odin Lloyd was found shot to death near Hernandez's mansion. In April 2015, Hernandez was convicted of first-degree murder and given mandatory life without parole.

Legendary "Wall of Sound" music producer Phil Spector fatally shot actress Lana Clarkson in the foyer of his Alhambra, California castle in February 2003. Following a retrial in 2009, Spector was convicted of second-degree murder and sentenced to 19 years to life in state prison.

Actor Michael Jace, who portrayed LAPD officer Julien Lowe on FX's hit police drama The Shield, fatally shot his wife, April Jace, at their Los Angeles home in May 2014. In June 2016, a jury convicted Jace of second-degree murder with a firearm enhancement, resulting in 40 years to life.

Former Canadian child actor Ryan Grantham, who appeared in Diary of a Wimpy Kid and CW's Riverdale, pleaded guilty to the March 2020 second-degree murder of his mother, Barbara Waite, in British Columbia. In September 2022, he received a mandatory life sentence with a 14-year parole minimum.

Platinum-selling No Limit Records rapper C-Murder (born Corey Miller)—brother of hip-hop mogul Master P—was convicted of second-degree murder following the January 2002 fatal shooting of 16-year-old fan Steve Thomas inside a Louisiana nightclub. In August 2009, he was sentenced to life without parole.

Former UFC and Bellator MMA fighter War Machine (Jonathan Koppenhaver) was convicted on 29 felony counts—including kidnapping, sexual assault, and coercion—stemming from an August 2014 attack on Christy Mack and Corey Thomas. In June 2017, he received life with parole eligibility after 36 years.

Texas underground rapper Big Lurch (Antron Singleton) committed a horrifying April 2002 attack in Los Angeles while under the influence of PCP. Convicted of the first-degree murder and aggravated mayhem of his roommate, Tynisha Ysais, Singleton was sentenced in 2003 to life without parole.

Former NFL linebacker Eric Naposki—who played for the New England Patriots and Indianapolis Colts—was arrested 15 years after the December 1994 murder of Newport Beach entrepreneur Bill McLaughlin. Prosecutors proved Naposki carried out a contract killing, and in 2012 he received life without parole.

A first-round NFL draft pick who recorded 57.5 sacks for the Los Angeles and Oakland Raiders, Anthony Wayne Smith was linked years later to a string of brutal executions. In January 2016, following multiple murder convictions, he received three consecutive life sentences without parole.

Three-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle Dana Stubblefield—the 1997 NFL Defensive Player of the Year and a Super Bowl champion with the San Francisco 49ers—was convicted in July 2020 of forcibly raping a developmentally disabled woman in 2015 and was sentenced to 15 years to life.

Actor and rapper Kaalan "KR" Walker, who appeared in All Eyez on Me and the 2018 remake of SuperFly, used social media to lure aspiring models under the guise of photo shoots and castings. Convicted in April 2022 of raping four women and three teenage girls, he received 50 years to life.

Born Michael Peterson and later known as Charles Salvador, the notorious British bare-knuckle boxer was originally jailed in 1974 for armed robbery. After taking prison art teacher Phil Danielson hostage for 44 hours at HMP Hull in 1999, he was handed a discretionary life sentence in 2000.

Brooklyn battle rapper Ra Diggs (born Ronald Herron) gained notoriety through street-rap videos filmed in the Gowanus Houses. Convicted in June 2014 on 21 federal counts—including racketeering, drug trafficking, and three murders—Herron received 12 consecutive life terms plus 105 years.

Former soap opera actor Demosthenes "Don" Savalas—nephew of iconic Kojak star Telly Savalas—appeared on General Hospital before descending into armed crime. Following a botched 1990 armed robbery in Palm Springs in which a restaurant worker was fatally shot, he received 15 years to life.