Former NASA astronaut Lisa Nowak became an internationally known figure when in February 2007 she drove from Houston to Orlando, Fla., to confront Colleen Shipman, who was involved with Nowak's lover, William Oefelein.
After donning a disguise and confronting Shipman at the Orlando airport, Nowak was arrested and later charged with the attempted kidnapping of the U.S. Air Force Captain.
Initially Nowak pleaded not guilty to charges levied against her, but by Nov. 10, 2009, she agreed to a plea deal, which included pleading guilty to felony burglary and misdemeanor battery.
On March 17, Nowak was in the news again after requesting that a judge seal her criminal record in reference to the crimes against Shipman. Nowak's crime of passion was highly visible in the media, as were the cases involving Steve McNair, Arturo Gatti and O.J. Simpson.
Steve McNair
Steve McNair was an NFL quarterback who spent most of his career with the Tennessee Titans.
On July 4, 2009, McNair was discovered dead as a result of gunshot wounds. Sahel Kazemi, with whom the married McNair had had an affair, was also dead.
Nashville, Tenn., police ruled the deaths a murder-suicide and believed that McNair was asleep when Kazemi shot him twice in the body and twice in the head.
Underneath Kazemi's body was a 9-mm gun and trace evidence of gunpowder residue was found on her left hand.
Although it's not certain what led to the murder-suicide, Kazemi was undergoing a very difficult financial situation and is said to have believed that McNair was involved in another extra-marital relationship.
McNair's death left his wife Mechelle a widow and their four sons without a father.
Arturo Gatti
Although boxing legend Arturo Gatti's July 2009 death was eventually deemed a suicide, Gatti's wife Amanda Rodrigues was initially charged with first degree murder.
Rodrigues and Gatti had a son together, and the three of them were vacationing in Brazil in 2009 when Gatti's death occurred.
The couple had endured a volatile marriage and members of Gatti's family, along with his manager, Pat Lynch, believe that Rodrigues was behind his death.
In addition to the couples' constant arguing, Gatti's will was changed just one month before his death, leaving his $6 million estate to Rodrigues despite their continuing troubles.
According to a report by the New York Daily News, Brazilian police believe that a drunken Gatti was "despondent" over his trouble marriage and used his wife's purse strap to hang himself.
O.J. Simpson
Called the "trial of the century" former football legend O.J. Simpson was tried for the June 12, 1994, murders of his ex-wife, Nicole Brown, and her friend Ronald Goldman.
On Oct. 3, 1995 a jury found Simpson not guilty of the murders and the televised verdict was watched by more than half the U.S. population.
In 1997, a Santa Monica jury found Simpson liable for the wrongful death of Ronald Goldman and Simpson was ordered to pay over $33 million for damages.
Simpson went on to write a book in 2006 called "If I Did It" but the publishers withdrew it right before it was to be released. The Goldman family, however won the right to release the book due to the unpaid civil judgment they'd won in 1997.
In 2007, Simpson was arrested in Las Vegas for armed robbery and kidnapping after he broke into a hotel room to retrieve some of his sports memorabilia which he claimed had been stolen from him.
By Dec. 5, 2008, however, Simpson was declared guilty and sentenced to 33 years in prison with a chance of parole in nine years.
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