10 Celebrities Who Accidentally or Intentionally Killed Someone: From Snoop Dogg to Alec Baldwin

10 Celebrities Who Killed Someone Accidentally or On Purpose

While murder can be described as one of the most heinous crimes of humanity, some celebrities – both actors and professional athletes – have sometimes intentionally or accidentally killed people. While some have received their due punishment from the courts, some have experienced traumatic episodes. Here are ten such celebrities who may have killed people accidentally or intentionally.

1. Matthew Broderick

Ferris Bueller’s Day Off star Matthew Broderick was involved in a tragic car accident while visiting Ireland with his then-girlfriend Jennifer Grey in 1987. Broderick, who was driving a rented BMW 316 from Irvinestown to Maguiresbridge in the middle of heavy rain, crashed his car into an oncoming car, killing two people – 28-year-old Amy Gallagher and her mother Margaret Doherty, 63. Broderick spent four weeks in hospital after being seriously injured. Local firefighter Ken Ramsey, who rescued those injured in the crash, said the actor’s “main concern was for the people in the other car” when he was rescued. While Broderick was charged with causing death by dangerous driving, he pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of careless driving and paid a $175 fine. Margaret’s son Martin Doherty told the New York Post: “I didn’t kill my mother and sister on purpose. I felt strong emotions at the time, but I have since forgiven him and have no anger towards him,” according to LADbible.

2. Laura Bush

Former first lady Laura Bush also suffered a tragic car accident when she ran a stop sign and hit another car — killing 17-year-old Michael Douglas. Bush was 17 at the time. She recalled the incident during President George Bush’s 2000 reelection campaign. She also spoke about the aftermath of the accident, writing in her 2010 book “Spoken From the Heart,” “I lost my faith in November, lost it for many, many years,” before adding, “It was the first time I prayed to God for something, begged him for something, not a simple child’s wish on a star, but a humble plea for another human life. And it was as if no one heard,” according to NPR. She also wrote that “for years after the accident, she was plagued by guilt, especially after not attending the funeral and not contacting the parents of the deceased teenager.”

3. Rebecca Gayheart

Car accidents have become one of the most common causes of unnatural death in the United States. Rebecca Gayheart, star of “Beverly Hills, 90210,” has also been involved in such a case. The actress had a terrifying experience when she was involved in a car accident that killed a nine-year-old boy, Jorge Cruz Jr. Gayheart shared that on June 13, 2001, she was driving when the car in front of her slammed on its brakes. Gayheart swerved the car, hitting the boy who was in the road to pick up a soccer ball. The actress shared, according to USA Today, “If the car in front of you slams on its brakes and stops, you don’t swerve to avoid hitting it. You hit it because there’s a reason it stops,” before adding, “I didn’t see the reason, but it’s something everyone should know.” Gayheart was sentenced to probation, a one-year driver’s license suspension, a $2,800 fine and 750 hours of community service after pleading guilty to vehicular homicide in November 2001. According to Gayheart, she settled a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the child’s parents out of court. The actress also paid for his funeral and medical expenses.

4. Henry Ruggs

Former Las Vegas Raiders football player Henry Ruggs has been charged with murder in the deaths of Tina Tintor and her dog Max in the predawn crash on Nov. 2, 2021. The former Raiders player was sentenced to at least three years in Nevada prison in 2023. Huggs reportedly accelerated his sports car to 156 miles per hour while drunk, according to the AP.

5. Johnny Lewis

“Sons of Anarchy” star Johnny Lewis met a tragic end when he jumped from a roof after killing his 81-year-old landlady, Catherine Davis, by strangulation and blunt force trauma to the head in 2012. Before that incident, Lewis had been arrested three times between 2011 and 2012 and was also charged with assault with a deadly weapon.

6. Vince Neil

Like many of the other members of this list, Vince Neil of Motley Crue also killed a man in a car accident. In December 1984, Neil, after returning home from a concert during the Shout at the Devil tour, immediately got involved in a house party. As soon as the alcohol in their house ran out, Neil went out to buy more alcohol, with the band’s drummer Razzle by his side. Unfortunately, he veered his car into the next lane and collided head-on with a car in the opposite lane, killing Razzle in the accident. Although he was to face a manslaughter charge because his blood alcohol level was well over the legal limit, he avoided punishment by paying a large sum of money and changing his lifestyle, according to Far Out.

7. Aaron Hernandez

American football player Aaron Hernandez was arrested and charged with the murder of Odin Lloyd in 2013. Lloyd was dating the sister of Hernandez’s fiancée at the time. After his 2015 arrest, he was found guilty of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole at the Souza-Baranowski Correctional Center. The football player was found dead in his cell in 2017. His death was ruled a suicide.

8. Alec Baldwin

Alec Baldwin endured a harrowing experience after a loaded gun was fired, killing cinematographer Halyna Hutchins during the filming of “Rust” on October 21, 2021. Baldwin, who also produced the film, was holding the gun when the loaded gun went off, killing cinematographer Hutchings and wounding director Joel Souza. Although the Santa Fe District Attorney charged Baldwin and gunsmith Hannah Gutierrez-Reed with one count each of involuntary manslaughter in 2023, Baldwin pleaded not guilty. In July 2024, Baldwin was indicted, and his charges were dismissed with prejudice.

9. Snoop Dogg

Snoop Dogg was arrested and charged with first-degree murder in connection with the fatal shooting of his bodyguard, McKinley Lee, in 1993. The man who was killed was Philip Woldermariam, a member of a rival gang. Dogg was charged because he allegedly drove the car from which his bodyguard fired the shot. However, both Snoop Dogg and his bodyguard were acquitted in February 1996.

10. Caitlyn Jenner

In 2015, Caitlyn Jenner was involved in a fatal multi-car accident on Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu, California. Jenner’s SUV rear-ended the vehicle, pushing it into the opposite lane of traffic, leading to the fatal collision that killed 69-year-old Kim Howe. Investigators determined that Jenner was driving below the speed limit but was following too closely. Jenner’s attorney alleged in court documents that “photographers ‘stalked’ Jenner, chased her, and harassed her throughout the day leading up to the incident.” While Jenner faced lawsuits from Howe’s family and other parties involved, prosecutors declined to pursue criminal charges, citing insufficient evidence for vehicular homicide. The lawsuits were later settled out of court.