Every year, thousands of people fall victim to volatile offenders in the United States. Among them areĀ family members of a surprising number of celebrities. Some celebrities were just children when tragedy struck while others were successful adults.
Charlize Theron's mother, for example, shot her father in self-defense in 1991. Theron's father was reportedly a heavy drinker prone toĀ aggression, and he threatened to kill her mother and Charlize in a fit of rage. This incident caused Theron's mother to legally takeĀ him down in order to save both of their lives. Other actors who have had family members who were victimsĀ include Kelsey Grammer, Bill Cosby, and Dylan McDermott.
Tennis stars Venus and Serena Williams are also on this list. Their older sister, Yetunde Price, was murderedĀ in a Los Angeles neighborhood. Their story is just one of many tragic celebrity cases of siblings, relatives, and families who passed at the hands of another.
Ron Ely's son, Cameron Ely, fatally stabbed his mother, Valerie Lundeen Ely, at the couple's California home on October 15, 2019.
Cameron was then taken out by Santa Barbara police officers after he threatened them as they responded to a report of a family disturbance at the Ely house.
Kelsey Grammer has had numerous tragic events occur throughout his life. In 1968, when he was just 13 years old, Grammer's estranged father was slain by a psychopath. His two half-brothers perished in a scuba-diving accident.
Then, in 1975, notorious serial killer Freddie Glenn abducted and killed Grammer's sister.
In 1993, Michael Jordan's father pulled over along a North Carolina highway at a rest stop to take a nap. While he was sleeping, he was taken out by two teenagers.
His body was found in a swamp days later, while his car was found abandoned in a wooded area, stripped of everything valuable.
In 2008, Jennifer Hudson suffered a horrible family tragedy when her mother, brother, and nephew were all slain by her brother-in-law, William Balfour.
Balfour was separated from Hudson's sister Julia when he went on the violent spree.
