Top Crime Stories of 2007

A lone gunman opened fire at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, VA, killing 32 people in what officials say is the deadliest shooting massacre in U.S. history. The gunman, Cho Seung-Hui, first entered residence hall West Ambler Johnston, where he shot and killed two students. He then crossed campus to Norris Hall where he randomly shot 30 more people.

North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper dropped all charges against three Duke University lacrosse team players after determining that there was no creidble evidence that a sexual attack took place. District Attorney Mike Nifong was disbarred and sued by the three players.

In the midst of a media coverage frenzy, O.J. Simpson was arrested in Las Vegas on several felony charges in connection with the armed robbery in a hotel room where some of the former football player's sport memorabilia was being offered for sale. After a preliminary hearing, Simpson was order to face trial on the charges next year.

Following several delays, John Evander Couey, a repeat sex offender whose crimes against nine-year-old Jessica Lunsford led to tougher laws across the nation, was found guilty and [sentenced to death. Circuit Judge Ric Howard spent almost an hour reminding Couey why he was being given the ultimate punishment by detailing the gruesome details of his crimes against the "girl in the pink hat."

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Larry Fidler declared a mistrial in the murder trail of music producer Phil Spector after the jury once again reported that they were hopelessly deadlocked. The jury said it was deadlocked at 10-2. Previously, they reported being deadlocked at 7-5. Both times, the majority favored conviction. A new trial will begin in 2008.

On January 13, 2007, police a St. Louis apartment for Ben Ownby, who had been abducted getting off a school bus four days earlier, also found 15-year-old Shawn Hornbeck, who had been missing since October 2002. Arrested and charged with dozens of crimes was a pizzaria manager, Michael Devlin, who later pleaded guilty to all charges.

Michael Skakel's appeal for a new trial, based on a claim that two other men committed the 1975 murder of Martha Moxley, was rejected by a Superior Court judge. The appeal was based on a statement by Gitano "Tony" Bryant in 2003 that two of his friends killed the 15-year-old Moxley.

A Tennessee judge sentenced Mary Winkler to 210 days incarceration for her voluntary manslaughter conviction for shooting her husband in the back with a shotgun while he lay in bed. Winkler received credit for the time she served in jail before her trial, leaving only 60 days that she was actually incarcerated, most of it in a mental ward. Now free, she wants custody of her three daughters.

Authorities in Aruba have officially closed the investigation into the disappearance of Alabama teen Natalee Holloway without bringing any charges against anyone. Aruban prosecutors said they had exhausted all of their resources to solve the case, but did not find enough evidence to charge anyone.

A space shuttle astronaut, Navy Capt. Lisa Nowak, 43, was charged with attempted first-degree murder after she drove 900 miles, wearing a wig, a trench coat and an adult diaper so that she would not have to stop, to confront another woman she thought was romantically involved with a space shuttle pilot. The charges were later reduced and much of the evidence against Nowak was thrown out by a Florida judge.