20 Celebs Known More For Their Crimes Than Their Career
Fame can fade fast when criminal cases take over the headlines. Courtrooms, convictions, and sentencing updates often eclipse chart success, box office numbers, or championship stats, leaving a very different kind of spotlight on public figures. The entries below focus on verifiable legal records and case outcomes so readers have a clear, factual picture of what happened.
Each item notes the charges, convictions, or pleas and the sentences imposed, along with concise career context to show what these people did before or after their cases. It is a straight record of legal facts and professional milestones, without rumor or speculation.
R. Kelly
In 2021 a federal jury in New York convicted Robert Sylvester Kelly of racketeering and sex trafficking and the court imposed a 30 year prison sentence. In 2023 a federal court in Chicago sentenced him to 20 years on child pornography and enticement charges, with one year ordered to run consecutive to his New York term.
Kelly rose to prominence as an R&B singer and producer in the 1990s and 2000s. He is serving his combined sentence in federal custody after multiple appeals failed, and his earliest projected release falls in the 2040s.
Harvey Weinstein
Weinstein was sentenced in Los Angeles in 2023 to 16 years after a 2022 conviction for rape and sexual assault. In New York his 2020 conviction was overturned on appeal, a retrial was held in 2025, and a jury found him guilty on one count of criminal sexual act, with sentencing pending while he remains incarcerated due to the California term.
Weinstein co founded a major film studio and produced multiple award winning films. His legal cases reshaped industry standards on workplace conduct, and he remains in state custody as additional proceedings continue.
Jared Fogle
In 2015 Fogle pleaded guilty to distribution and receipt of child sexual abuse material and to traveling to engage in illicit sexual conduct with a minor. He received a 15 year and 8 month federal sentence, restitution obligations, and lifetime supervised release after prison.
Fogle gained national attention through fast food advertising in the 2000s. Following his plea the company severed ties, his charitable foundation ended operations, and he has been housed in federal facilities during his sentence.
Phil Spector
In 2009 a California jury convicted Spector of second degree murder in the death of Lana Clarkson and he was sentenced to 19 years to life. He died in 2021 while serving his term in state prison.
Spector had been known for his Wall of Sound production work with major artists. His final years were defined by appeals, medical issues, and incarceration rather than music projects.
Roman Polanski
Polanski was arrested in 1977 and later pleaded guilty to unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor. Before formal sentencing he fled the United States in 1978 and has remained a fugitive from U.S. justice while living and working in Europe.
Polanski continued to direct films abroad and won major international awards. Extradition efforts and civil matters have persisted for decades alongside his film career outside the United States.
Lori Loughlin
Loughlin pleaded guilty in the college admissions case in 2020 to conspiracy offenses involving honest services mail and wire fraud. She was sentenced to two months in federal prison, a fine, supervised release, and community service requirements.
Known for network sitcom and family television roles, she returned to acting with limited projects after her release. The case concluded with completion of custody, payment of penalties, and fulfillment of court ordered service.
Felicity Huffman
Huffman pleaded guilty in 2019 to conspiracy to commit mail fraud and honest services mail fraud in the admissions case. She was sentenced to 14 days in prison, a fine, supervised release, and community service, and she completed those terms the same year.
Her career includes film and television work and an Academy Award nomination. After sentencing she resumed acting with stage and television appearances while remaining compliant with court directives.
Mike Tyson
In 1992 Tyson was convicted of rape in Indiana and sentenced to six years, serving about three before parole in 1995. He later faced probation violations and civil litigation arising from separate incidents.
Tyson resumed professional boxing after release and fought for heavyweight titles. His immigration status was affected by the conviction, and travel restrictions and denials continued to appear in news coverage of subsequent public appearances.
Oscar Pistorius
Pistorius was convicted of murdering Reeva Steenkamp after appellate review converted an earlier culpable homicide verdict to murder. He received a term of 13 years and five months and was placed on parole effective January 5, 2024 under South African correctional supervision until late 2029.
Pistorius had been a Paralympic and Olympic sprinter with international endorsements. Since release on parole he has been subject to restrictions on work, travel, and media contact as part of his supervision conditions.
Aaron Hernandez
In 2015 a Massachusetts jury convicted Hernandez of first degree murder in the killing of Odin Lloyd, and he received life without the possibility of parole. He died by suicide in prison in 2017, and in 2019 the state’s high court reinstated his conviction.
Hernandez had signed a major professional football contract prior to his arrest. His team released him on the day of his initial charges and the franchise voided remaining guarantees as the criminal case proceeded.
Suge Knight
Knight pleaded no contest to voluntary manslaughter in 2018 related to a 2015 fatal hit and run and received a 28 year sentence under California’s three strikes law. He remains incarcerated in state prison.
Before his conviction Knight co founded a prominent hip hop label and managed successful artists. His later years involved multiple arrests, civil suits, and health issues while the criminal case moved through court.
Joe Exotic
Joseph Maldonado Passage, widely known as Joe Exotic, was convicted in 2019 on two counts of murder for hire and on wildlife crimes under the Lacey Act and Endangered Species Act. He was resentenced in 2022 to 21 years in federal prison after an appellate ruling required a new sentencing hearing.
He operated a private zoo and later appeared in the Netflix series ‘Tiger King’. From custody he pursued appeals and sought executive clemency while the park closed and associated businesses ceased operations.
Danny Masterson
In 2023 a Los Angeles jury convicted Masterson on two counts of rape and the court imposed a sentence of 30 years to life. He was transferred to state prison and is required to register as a sex offender.
Masterson had longstanding sitcom credits and film roles prior to the charges. His conviction followed a retrial after a hung jury in 2022, and post sentence appeals are ongoing within the California courts.
Chris Brown
Brown pleaded guilty in 2009 to felony assault of Robyn Rihanna Fenty and received five years of probation, a domestic violence program, and community labor. He later served additional jail time in 2014 after admitting a probation violation.
Brown continued to release albums and tour, while court supervision imposed travel clearances, counseling, and service milestones. Subsequent legal matters included probation reviews and compliance hearings through the end of his term.
Wesley Snipes
In 2008 a federal jury convicted Snipes of three misdemeanor counts for willful failure to file federal income tax returns. He was sentenced to three years, reported to prison in 2010, and was released in 2013 before completing home confinement.
Snipes returned to acting after release with supporting and lead roles. The tax case also produced appellate rulings and civil disputes about liabilities that stretched well beyond his custody period.
Martha Stewart
In 2004 Stewart was convicted of conspiracy, obstruction of justice, and making false statements to federal investigators in connection with a stock sale inquiry. She served five months in federal prison, five months of home confinement, and a period of supervised release, and paid a fine.
Stewart stepped down from company leadership during the case then relaunched television and product ventures after release, including ‘The Martha Stewart Show’. The insider trading charge itself was dismissed at trial, but the obstruction related convictions stood on appeal.
Tekashi 6ix9ine
Daniel Hernandez, known as Tekashi 6ix9ine, pleaded guilty in 2019 to federal racketeering and related counts tied to the Nine Trey Gangsta Bloods. He was sentenced to two years with credit for time served and completed a term of supervised release, later facing additional supervised release violations handled in federal court.
Hernandez resumed recording and performing under strict conditions after his cooperation with prosecutors. Court filings document travel approvals, drug testing, and appearances in violation proceedings that followed his initial sentence.
Allison Mack
Mack pleaded guilty in 2019 to racketeering and racketeering conspiracy for her role in the NXIVM organization. In 2021 she was sentenced to three years in federal prison and was released in 2023 to probation and community service obligations.
She was known for her work on the series ‘Smallville’. Prosecutors credited her cooperation in the successful prosecution of NXIVM’s leader, and court records detail fines and post release supervision terms.
Anna Sorokin
In 2019 Sorokin, also known as Anna Delvey, was convicted in New York of grand larceny, attempted grand larceny, and theft of services. She received a sentence of four to twelve years, paid fines and restitution, was paroled in 2021, then detained by immigration authorities and released to house arrest in 2022 with electronic monitoring.
Sorokin’s story was later dramatized in ‘Inventing Anna’. Court orders limit her public activity while immigration matters continue, and media coverage has tracked her compliance with bail and supervision conditions.
O. J. Simpson
In 2008 a Nevada jury convicted Simpson of armed robbery and kidnapping related to a memorabilia dispute in Las Vegas and the court imposed a sentence of up to 33 years with parole eligibility after nine. He was granted parole in 2017 and completed supervision before his death in 2024.
Simpson had been a Heisman Trophy winner and a Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee who also acted in films and television. His legal history also includes a 1995 criminal acquittal and later civil liability findings in the deaths of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman, which are separate from the Nevada case that led to his imprisonment.
Share your thoughts on which cases you think most changed a public figure’s legacy in the comments.