The most popular activities you come across in sports include major wins, scandals, attractive NBA odds, and amazing transfers among others. However, the celebrity status of athletes is one other famous thing in sports.
Celebrities have different reputations both positive and negative. Apart from scandals, some athlete celebrities have had their time in jail because of crime. We've put together a list of notable athlete celebrities who have been to jail.
Keep reading to learn more about them.
OJ Simpson
When it came to the 1995 double homicide of his ex-wife and her friend, the former NFL player was found not guilty. He raided a Las Vegas hotel room in 2007 at gunpoint, and he was eventually convicted of abduction and armed criminal robbery. Simpson was freed from prison in October 2017 after serving nine years.
Chad Johnson (formerly Chad Ochocinco)
Chad Johnson was charged with domestic violence charges in 2012 after he allegedly head-butted his then-wife Evelyn Lozada in a Miami airport.
He was arrested for battery and resisting arrest but was acquitted of all charges. He played for the Miami Dolphins at his arrest but was released by the team shortly afterward. He later played for several other teams before retiring from the NFL in 2014.
Barry Bonds
In 2011 Barry Bonds was convicted of obstruction of justice after lying to Congress about using steroids during his career as an MLB player. The trial related to the BALCO scandal, which involved distributing performance-enhancing drugs by elite athletes who used steroids as part of their training.
Ray Lewis
Ray Lewis is a former Baltimore Ravens player charged with murder in 2000. He was accused of stabbing two men at a Super Bowl party. He was charged with murder but later pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice after he testified against his friends who had been charged with murder.
Michael Vick
Michael Vick is a former quarterback for the Atlanta Falcons who served 18 months in prison after being convicted on federal dogfighting charges in 2007. He has since returned to football as a quarterback for the Philadelphia Eagles and has regained popularity with fans around the country because of his humanitarian work off the field and his athletic accomplishments on it.
Mike Tyson
Tyson is the only boxer ever to hold the WBC, WBA, and IBF titles simultaneously, but his life has been plagued by scandal since he became champion in 1986 at age 20. In 1992, he was jailed for rape and spent six years in prison.
He served three years before being released on parole in 1995. He's also been accused of domestic abuse against his then-wife Robin Givens and his ex-wife Monica Turner, who filed restraining orders against him during their marriages.
Tyson was sentenced to six years of incarceration for drug possession in 2000 after police found cocaine in his car during a traffic stop.
Tonya Harding
Figure skater Tonya Harding was banned from competing at the 1994 Olympics after attacking fellow skater Nancy Kerrigan with a baton while practicing at a Detroit rink. Harding admitted to conspiring to obstruct justice, and she was fined $100,000 and put on 3 years of parole, and 500 hours of unpaid work were imposed.
Two men involved in the attack were also sentenced for their roles in the incident: Shawn Eckardt received two years' probation while Derrick Smith received nine months in prison and three years' probation plus $150,000 restitution.
Donté Stallworth
He was a wide receiver in the National Football League for the Miami Dolphins, Denver Broncos, and Baltimore Ravens between 2006 and 2009. He retired from the sport in 2009. On I-95 in Miami Beach, Florida, he was detained in 2009 for drunken driving and manslaughter after hitting and killing a person while intoxicated.
He was sentenced to 30 days of jail time, one year of probation, and 1,000 hours of community service.
Verdict
This list provides you with a short but helpful guide on which athletes are celebrities who went to jail and their details.
These celebrity athletes can serve as an inspiration to everyone that no matter how successful you are, where you come from, or whatever mistakes you make in your past, you can still live a positive life if you learn from your mistakes and reach out for any help that may be available for you.