Here we make a list of celebrities who were arrested for domestic abuse.
1. Josh Brolin
On December 20, 2004, actress Diane Lane called the cops on her husband of few months, actor Josh Brolin, who was arrested on a misdemeanor charge of domestic battery. Josh was released later as Lane did not want to press charges. The couple’s spokesperson later revealed to the press that the altercation was a misunderstanding and Josh was charged for the lowest-end misdemeanor charge of domestic battery, which Lane didn’t want to press. The couple divorced in 2013 after 9 years of marriage.
2. James Hunt
The 1976 Formula One World Champion was arrested in the 1980s for assaulting his second wife, Sarah Lomax, which was witnessed by two police officers. He was released on bail after two hours, and the charges against him were dropped later. The couple divorced in 1989 on the grounds of adultery after six years of marriage.
3. Don Cornelius
Don Cornelius was arrested on October 2008 at his Los Angeles home for felony of domestic violence against his estranged wife, Russian model Victoria Avila-Cornelius. He was released on bail. In March 2009, he pled no contest to charges of spousal abuse and was placed on 36 months of probation. He was also banned from going near his estranged wife who had obtained two restraining orders against him. The couple divorced the same year in 2009 after eight years of marriage. The Soul Train’ host killed himself in 2012 after he was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease.
4. Christian Slater
Christian Slater was sentenced to three months in prison in 1997 for assaulting his girlfriend, Michelle Jonas, and a police officer while under the influence of cocaine. He was released from prison after 59 days on the basis of good behavior.
5. Billy Dee Williams
Billy Dee Williams was arrested on January 30, 1996, after he allegedly assaulted his live-in girlfriend, whom the police did not identify. He was released after he posted a $50,000 bail. The actor was charged with misdemeanor of spousal battery and dissuading a witness. The women who according to police had minor bruises and scratches, stated that the incident was her fault and she hoped they would drop the case. Williams agreed to undergo 52 counseling sessions in a plea bargain.
6. Evel Knievel
Evel Knievel was arrested in October 1994, when he was 56, at a Sunnyvale go-go bar on suspicion of battering his then girlfriend, 25-year-old Krystal Kennedy. The battering charge was dropped when Krystal declined to cooperate. Knievel married his girlfriend, Krystal Kennedy, in 1999, whom he began dating in 1992, and divorced in 2001. Following the divorce, Krystal was granted a restraining order against him. However they were able to sort out their differences and lived together until Knievel’s death in 2007. He left his entire estate to Krystal.
7. O. J. Simpson
Before the murder of his wife Nicole Brown and the media circus that followed, the football legend was arrested in 1989 after Nicole called the police multiple times to report spousal abuse. O.J. pleaded no contest to the charges. Nicole dropped the charges, as her parents encouraged her to drop the case and reconcile with O.J., as O.J. provided her father Louis with an opportunity to invest in a lucrative car rental facility, which would have benefitted her parents.
8. Jonathan Majors
Jonathan Majors was arrested on March 25, 2023, on charges stemming from domestic dispute with a thirty-year-old woman, who was later identified as Majors’ girlfriend. They got into a argument after she found text messages between the actor and another woman. When she confronted him over it, he slapped her and grabbed her by the neck. The actor was released from custody that day and his spokesperson denied all allegations against her client. Following this allegation multiple women have come forward with similar allegations. Weeks after his arrest, the actor was dropped as a client by his management company, Entertainment 360.
9. Stone Cold Steve Austin
Steve Austin’s wife Debra Marshall called the police to the couple’s home on June 15, 2002. When they arrived she told the police that Austin had hit her and then stormed out of the house before the police arrived. An arrest warrant was issued by the district attorney’s office on August 12. Austin handed himself the following day, at which point he was charged with domestic abuse. He pleaded no contest on November 25, and was given a year’s probation, a $1,000 fine, and ordered to carry out 80 hours of community service.
The couple divorced the following year in 2003 after three years of marriage. Following this incident, Austin returned to to WWE in 2003, while his wife was never invited back. Debra told Fox News in 2007 that WWE knew of the abuse and stopped her from revealing it as it would hurt their business.
Austin was accused again in March 2004, of assaulting his then-girlfriend, glamour model Tess Broussard, during a dispute. But this time no charges were filed and no arrests were made.
10. Tommy Lee
Tommy Lee assaulted his wife Pamela Anderson in 1998 during an altercation when she refused to call and ask her parents not to come over to their house. He kicked Pamela who was holding their 7-week old son Dylan, which left her with bruises and a torn fingernail. Tommy who pleaded not guilty was sentenced to six months in prison.
11. Jason Kidd
Jason Kidd was arrested in 2001 for assaulting his then-wife, Joumana Kidd. He pleaded guilty to a domestic abuse charge and was ordered to attend anger management classes for six months, as part of his plea deal. Kidd filed for divorce on January 9, 2007, citing the threat of false domestic abuse claims to the police as reasons for the divorce. His wife filed a counterclaim for divorce on February 15, 2007, claiming countless instances of abuse from the NBA star. The couple’s divorce was finalized in 2007 after being together for 10 years.
12. James Brown
The “Godfather of Soul” was arrested on four occasions between 1987 and 1995, on charges of assault against his third wife, Adrienne Rodriguez. In one of those four instances, Rodriguez reported to authorities that Brown beat her with an iron pipe and shot at her car. Rodriguez was hospitalized after the last assault in October 1995, after which he was charged with felony assault. But the charges were dropped after she died in January 1996 after undergoing liposuction procedure owing to a combination of PCP and prescription medications.
13. Jim Brown
Jim Brown was arrested at least seven times for assault, mainly against women. He was never found guilty of a major offence in most of these assault cases, as women refused to press charges against him after calling the police. In 1965, Brown was arrested in his hotel room for assault and battery against 18-year-old Brenda Ayres; he was later acquitted of those charges.
In 1968, Brown was charged with assault with intent to commit murder of model Eva Bohn-Chin. The charges were later dismissed after Bohn-Chin refused to cooperate with the prosecutor’s office.
In 1985, Brown was charged with raping a 33-year-old woman. The charges were later dismissed. In 1986, he was arrested for assaulting his fiancée Debra Clark. Clark refused to press charges, and he was released. Debra Clark wrote a book about this experience.
In 1999, Brown was arrested and charged with making threats toward his wife Monique. Later that year, he was found guilty of vandalism for smashing her car with a shovel. He was sentenced to three years’ probation, one year of domestic violence counseling, and 400 hours of community service along with a $1,800 fine. In 2000 he was sentenced to six months in jail for ignoring the terms of his sentence. He was released after serving three months in prison in 2002.
14. Rick Allen
The one-handed Def Leppard drummer was arrested in 1995 for spousal abuse of his wife Stacy Lauren Gilbert. He was sentenced to a work crew and ordered to attend Alcoholics Anonymous meetings. The couple separated in 2000 after being together for 9 years.
15. Charlie Sheen
Charlie Sheen was arrested on December 25, 2009, for assaulting his then wife, Brooke Mueller, in Aspen, Colorado. He was released the same day from jail after posting an $8,500 bond. Sheen was charged with felony menacing, as well as third-degree assault. Sheen pleaded guilty to misdemeanor assault on August 2, 2010, as part of a plea bargain that included dismissal of the other charges against him. Sheen was sentenced to 30 days in a drug rehab center, 30 days of probation, and 36 hours of anger management.
16. Vanilla Ice
Charlie Sheen was arrested on December 25, 2009, for assaulting his then wife, Brooke Mueller, in Aspen, Colorado. He was released the same day from jail after posting an $8,500 bond. Sheen was charged with felony menacing, as well as third-degree assault. Sheen pleaded guilty to misdemeanor assault on August 2, 2010, as part of a plea bargain that included dismissal of the other charges against him. Sheen was sentenced to 30 days in a drug rehab center, 30 days of probation, and 36 hours of anger management.
17. Chris Brown
On February 8, 2009, Rihanna who was scheduled to perform at the 51st Annual Grammy Awards, was cancelled. It was revealed that her then-boyfriend, Chris Brown, physically assaulted her in a Lamborghini, the previous night. The news spread like wildfire. They got into a argument after Brown admitted to Rihanna that he has been unfaithful to her, at which point she started mouthing off which is when Brown started hitting her.
Brown turned himself in to the Los Angeles Police Department, who booked him under suspicion of making criminal threats. On June 22, 2009, Brown pleaded guilty to a felony and accepted a plea deal of community labor, five years of probation, and domestic violence counseling. On August 25, Brown received five years of probation. The judge ordered Brown to remain 50 yards away from Rihanna, reduced to 10 yards at public events. In February 2011, at request of Brown’s and Rihanna’s lawyers, the judge modified the restraining order and allowed both the artists to appear at award shows together in the future.
