From the outside looking in, professional athletes seem to have it all and a little bit more. They have beaucoup cash, big mansions, exotic cars, the flyest women, the most expensive clothes and no worries. They definitely don’t seem like they should be getting themselves involved in crimes typically committed by those who have little or nothing to lose, especially not a crime as serious as killing someone.
Yet, from time to time athletes who have everything going for them find themselves on the wrong end of the law, behind a homicide. Former New England Patriots tight end, Aaaron Hernandez may be the most recent athlete to allegedly be involved with catching a body, but he isn’t the first. There is a long list of athletes who, for one reason or another, got mixed up in murder.
Here are 10 professional athletes who were charged with or convicted of taking someone’s life…
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Photo: LAPD
Scott “Razor Ramon” Hall (Wrestling)
Shet talking, toothpick throwing pro wrestler Razor Ramon, was charged with second-degree murder in 1983 as the result of killing a man during a scuffle outside of a nightclub. Hall shot the man with his own gun after wrestling away the pistol during the fight. He claimed self defense and the charges were later dropped due to lack of evidence.
Ray Lewis (Football)
In February 2000, Ray Lewis and two companions were charged with the stabbing deaths of two men, Jacinth Baker and Richard Lollar, during a fight following a post Super Bowl party in Atlanta. In a plea deal, Lewis testified against his alleged accomplices, Reginald Oakley and Joseph Sweeting, in exchange for a misdemeanor charge of obstruction of justice. He was sentenced to 12 months probation and given a $250,000 fine by the NFL. Oakley and Sweeting were later acquitted on murder charges.
Anthony Smith (Football)
Former Los Angeles Raiders defensive end, Wayne Smith spent seven years in the NFL before retiring in 1997. Then, according to authorities, he started catching bodies. In 2011, he was charged with the death of a Southern California man who was found stomped beaten and shot along a desert highway in 2008. In 2012, he was charged with three additional murders he allegedly committed between 1999 and 2001. He is currently awaiting trial.
O.J. Simpson (Football)
In 1994, O.J. Simpson was charged with the murders of his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and friend Ronald Goldman. The subsequent joy ride and trial were two of the most watched events of the 20th century. After a complicated nearly year-long trial, Simpson was found not guilty. However, in 1997, he lost civil suites to both the Brown and Goldman families for the wrongful deaths of their family member.
Javaris Crittenton (Basketball)
Former Los Angeles Lakers and Washington Wizard, Javaris Crittenton was charged with the murder of 22-year-old Julian Jones in August 2011. According to authorities, Crittenton shot Jones unintentionally while targeting someone else. The former Georgia Tech star reportedly joined the Mansfield Gangster Crips shortly after joining the Lakers and was targeting a rival gang member who had previously robbed him when Jones was killed. He is currently awaiting trial.
Chris Benoit (Wrestling)
Over a three day period in June 2007, well known Canadian wrestler Chris Benoit murdered his wife and 7-year-old son before killing himself. Initially thought to be brought on by “roid rage,” later examinations proved that severe brain damage was more than likely the culprit for Benoit’s mental break down.
Aaron Hernandez (Football)
New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez was arrested in June 2013 and charged with the murder of his associate, Odin Lloyd, whose body was found not too far from the football player’s Massachusetts home. The arrest came days after police searched Hernandez’s home for hours and discovered that he intentionally destroyed his home surveillance system and cell phone and recently had his home’s interior professionally cleaned.
Ray Carruth (Football)
In December 1999, Carolina Panthers wideout Ray Carruth was arrested while hiding in the trunk of a car and charged with the death of his pregnant girlfriend, Cherica Adams. According to authorities, Carruth conspired to have Adams killed and was even accomplice to the murder, having stopped his car in front of hers while a hired gunman sprayed her vehicle with bullets. He was later sentenced to 18 to 24 years in prison and is expected to be released in October 2018.
Rubin “The Hurricane” Carter (Boxing)
After fighting professionally for six years at the middleweight level, Rubin “The Hurricane” Carter was arrested and charged with triple homicide, following a bar robbery/homicide in 1966. He and another man were convicted twice for the crime despite lack of hard evidence and inconsistent testimony. After nearly 20 years in prison the former boxer’s case was overturned and he was freed in November 1985. The 1999 film, Hurricane, starring Denzel Washington is based on Rubin’s life.
Jayson Williams (Basketball)
In February 2002, limo driver Costas “Gus” Christofi was shot and killed on retired basketball player Jayson Williams’ property. According to reports, Williams was playing around with his shotgun when it went off killing Christofi. In April 2004, Williams was acquitted of murder but convicted of trying to cover up the shooting. In January 2010, he pled guilty to aggravated assault and was sentenced to five years in prison. He was released in April 2012.
